Reversed Hero
by Shizuka no Taisho
Summary: Has been updated!
1. Chapter 1

_**Summery: Phantom Planet is non-existent. Danny is captured and injected with a substance called Ecto-Reverso, which morphs him into a demon that is nearly unrecognizable. Sam and Tucker, along with Jazz and two other special guests, are fighting together to defeat the monster that was once their friend, but that is made much harder when our beloved Danny has a thing for one of his opposers.**_

_**All of the chapters have been reworked and edited to my newest degree of satisfaction, so enjoy if this is your first time reading, and welcome back if you are an old fan!**_

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**__

Danny Fenton looked like a normal teenage boy; messy black hair, baby blue eyes, a supposedly scrawny figure. Was in love with his best friend, but would never admit it. Barely scraping by in school.

He blended into the background, what with his shy attitude and quiet exterior.

But there was a secret that this seemingly unremarkable teen was hiding, something so important that the revealing of would change his whole life...Danny Fenton had an alter ego that went by the heroic guise known as Danny Phantom, the town's favorite subject of gossip and the heartthrob of hundreds of fangirls. An accident had transformed him into a half human half ghost hybrid, more commonly known as a halfa. Since his realization of the new powers he possessed, Danny set out to protect the town from all of the evil ghosts that came from his parent's ghost portal.

Danny was quite good at his "job". But, being a half ghost who saved the town on a daily basis had landed him in a spot of trouble on many occasions, one of those most memorable ones being when Danny learned he was destined to become the most evil ghost on the planet after his friends and family died in an accident. To make matters worse, he had actually come face to face with said ghost ten years in the future and had to fight him.

Of course, the poor halfa had endured other situations that threw him into trouble, especially since his parents still didn't know he was the famed Danny Phantom!

Ironically, Danny was currently wishing that his parents _did_ know who he really was...maybe then he wouldn't be zooming through the sky trying to avoid their shots from countless ghost weapons.

"Geez, those guys're getting better with those stupid things everyday," Danny grumbled, hastily going intangible as a bolt of bright green energy shot right through his body. Bright neon eyes stared down at the rumbling RV chasing after him, and with a long sigh he quickly turned invisible and flew down to the vehicle. Danny shot a tiny ecto blast at one of the tires, wincing as the RV instantly swerved off the road and nearly collided with a light pole. "Woops, guess I should've thought that one out more," he muttered.

Danny didn't have long to wait before the familiar forms of both his mom and dad burst out of the disabled vehicle. Both were armed to the teeth with countless weapons that Danny was sure would cause him serious pain if he was unfortunate enough to be hit by one, so he gladly flew higher away from the two. Danny stared down at his parents, lazily brushing at a stray lock of white hair as the two glared up at him.

"You're going down Ghost Boy! Your time of terrorizing this town has come to its end," his mom called, and Danny felt his eyes rolling at the supposedly "intimidating" remark.

"How many times do I have to tell you? I'm the good guy!" He let out a yelp as a sudden fire of energy beams headed in his direction, and Danny quickly flew out of the way, doing a somersault in midair. He let out a cry as he felt a beam lightly skate across his ankle, warm green ectoplasm immediately seeping from the wound. "Oww…" he hissed, throwing an irritated look down at his parents.

"Seriously, what is your guys' problem? I was minding my own business and out of nowhere you just decide to atta...**AAAGGGHHHH!!!!!**" Danny screamed as what felt like a lightening bolt struck him across the chest. The pain was so intense that he felt the rings signifying his change begin to appear around his middle. "No…" he snarled, forcing himself to blot out the pain. After a second the glowing blue-white rings disappeared, leaving behind a very angry and ragged Danny, with blood now trickling from a deep wound from his abdomen.

With a shaky hand Danny touched his front, wincing as his gloved fingers came away slick with glowing green ectoplasm lightly touched with flecks of red. "Dangit." Glancing around he noticed both his parents had disappeared from his trail of sight, the young hero's eyes glancing frantically at every shadow lingering around the sunlight buildings.

"Looking for us, Ghost Boy?"

As Danny began to turn around to face the voice another bolt of pain raced up his body, the energy practically frying his skin and sending wisps of smoke off his thin body. Sweat gleamed on his rapidly paling skin, reddened patches appearing along his arms and legs where his jumpsuit was burned away. His aura flickered, and slowly he fell to the street below in a dull CRASH, his body rolling and slamming back first into the asphalt.

Danny was racked with pain; he laid there a minute, silent, unmoving, until finally he sat up and shakingly pushed himself to his feet, the pain nearly making him scream. He swayed, booted feet barely holding him up, and Danny had to choke back a heave when he looked at his hands. The white gloves had been ripped to shreds, the skin beneath scraped raw and bloodied. His chest, usually covered by black spandex, was home to scratches and cuts from the rubble, and only a thin strip of material held the back and front together. He didn't even bother to look at his legs; his upper body gave him a pretty good idea.

A faint rumbling echoed in the air and his parents emerged from the shadows of a towering apartment building, both holding what looked like thin rifles made of a shining silver metal. "Give up ghost, your outnumbered!"

"Save yourself the pain." Maddie frowned, glaring at their young "foe".

Danny stared at her with wide green eyes, a hand grasping the wound marring the mass of his chest, holding it closed. Bright ecto blood seeped from between his already blood-stained fingers, and fresh tingles of pain continuously jabbed his battered body. "Never. I'm not the bad guy," he muttered, wincing as his mother pointed the end of her gun at his chest.

"Give up now." Danny shook his head, the action nearly causing him to fall flat on his face.

Maddie stared at him with her hard purple eyes, and with a dark smirk she pressed a glowing red button on the gun, the barrel beginning to crackle with glittering green energy. "Give up and come quietly, Ghost Boy. Don't make us hurt you," she muttered, but Danny smirked and nodded his head no. "Fine."

A piercing scream began to echo off the buildings. Raw energy shot out of the guns and hit the halfa, whirling around his body like a tornado of electric green, and through the green vortex they could see his body being slashed and burned by the sparkling energy. Danny screamed and tried to jump away from it, but the energy followed, swirling round and around his body and continuously ripping at his flesh. 'It hurts! Aghh--make it stop!' The cries rang in his head, but he barely noticed that they were falling from his bleeding mouth too.

Danny finally let out a muffled groan when the whirlwind disappeared, leaving him standing in a small pool of his own blood with small slashes cut into his arms, legs, and chest, adding to his already battered body. He swayed for a small moment before completely collapsing onto his knees. He felt blood drip into his eye and obscure his vision, but still he could make out their shadowy forms now standing above him. Choking back a moan of pain as the gun barrels dug into his stomach, he forced himself to smirk at his rivals, even though unconsciousness was slipping into his mind and unfolding black across his vision.

"Nighty night ghostie," Danny heard his dad chuckle, and when the pain in his chest reached unbearable levels he slipped into the dark and welcoming unconsciousness.

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Bright light seeped under Danny's eyelids, a blinding white glare that made the halfa squint and warily crack open his eyes. Instantly they widened as he glanced around his surroundings, oh so familiar and yet never so dangerous looking.

He was in the basement of Fenton Works. The glare blinding him was coming from a set of bright overhead lights, much like the ones at a hospital.

Struggling to sit up, Danny yelped in pain and glanced down at his lower body. He was strapped down with glowing green binds, which, he quickly realized, were the ecto-proof ones that were impossible for him to escape, and the one around his waist was just below his wound. "Great…just great," he grumbled, feebly tugging on the straps around his wrists. The cuts that littered his arms were dressed with soft white bandages, as were the ones on his legs and the massive one on his torso. "What the heck is going on?"

"You're here for a little experiment." Danny glanced at the stairway, rolling his eyes as his dad nearly stumbled down the steps, a goofy grin on his face. Close behind followed his mother, and Danny had to suppress a gasp as he saw the determined smile on her face, and the vial of a bright red substance in her right hand. He gulped, but a shadow of familiar stubbornness entered his peridot eyes as they approached the table. Danny glared up at them, a set smirk on his handsome face.

"I'm not interested," he retorted. Maddie smiled, her hand holding the vial lifting so that Danny had a clear look at the substance within; it gleamed ruby red in the light, a thin liquid that reminded Danny sickeningly of blood.

"I thought you might say that. Do you want to know what this is," she asked, lightly shaking the vial and making the liquid sloshed around. Danny glanced from it to her, a guarded look on his face when he nodded. "This is Ecto-Reverso. My husband and I invented it. It's designed to alter and numb certain emotional actions in ghosts by changing their psychological structure in the cerebrum. It also switches control from the dominant area of the cerebral cortex to the submissive region, which in turn changes their intelligence and reasoning." Maddie explained, her purple eyes nearly gouging holes into Danny's forehead as she stared at him.

"Yeah….I have no idea what you just said."

"It means, Phantom, that when injected with this substance, an evil ghost will be turned good," Jack quickly jumped in, apparently eager to show off to the trapped halfa.

Danny heard himself gasp; were they gonna inject him with that junk?! He struggled with the straps holding him down as his mom and dad stepped closer to him, the vial of Ecto-Reverso looking more sinister by the second. "No...you guys aren't thinking of," his words failed him, but Danny let out a strangled yell as Jack eagerly nodded. "You, you can't! I'm not the bad guy, how many times do I have to tell you?! Please…" he cried, desperately thrashing as Jack pulled a syringe out of a pocket on his jumpsuit and handed it to Maddie. "You don't understand," Danny managed to choke, tears beginning to fall freely down his face.

"Oh, don't we? You haunt our town, endanger our children and put thousands of lives at stake every day." She spat. "You're far too dangerous to be allowed to continue wandering the streets in this state. My husband and I have finally finished creating the solution to this issue, and you are the perfect specimen to try it on."

Maddie tipped the bottle up and stuck the needle in, filled the syringe to the brim with the Ecto-Reverso. Giving it a squirt, she advanced with the syringe and Danny let out a bone chilling cry, his struggling growing more frantic with each step she took towards him.

"Don't! Please, you--you don't know what you're doing!"

"What's going on down there?" Danny nearly cried in relief as Jazz stepped into the room. The aqua eyed teen glanced between the three of them, her gaze lingering on Danny while her mouth dropped open in what had to be sheer horror. "Mom, Dad, what are you guys doing? Why do you have Da...the Ghost Boy strapped to that table?!"

"Honey, we managed to capture him," Maddie soothed, "so now you and Danny don't have to worry about him terrorizing the town anymore. Your father and I are going to inject him with this," she held up the syringe, "and it will alter his state of mind and turn him good. Remember when I asked you those questions a few weeks ago, about how the brain works?" Jazz froze, her eyes widening as she saw the hurt look on her brother's face.

"Jazz…you…you helped them?"

"No…I--I didn't know!"

Danny turned away, gritting his teeth to keep from yelling and blowing his cover. Jazz felt her heart ache when he wouldn't look at her, but panic pushed back all other feelings when her mother pointed the needle at a vein in his arm.

"Stop! You can't!" Both Maddie and Jack turned to gaze at her, the looks on their faces clearly demanding an explanation from the redhead. Jazz stuttered and bit at her lip; what was she supposed to tell them? "Umm…it, it just doesn't seem right," she mumbled feebly, wincing as her mom raised an eyebrow at the lame excuse.

"Jasmine Fenton, we are doing a good thing. We're saving you and your brother from living in a town haunted by this freak." Maddie frowned, missing Danny's visible flinch. "It's entirely too much of a threat to let Phantom continue to wander around freely. This is the only way," she turned back to the struggling halfa, but a cry from behind caused her to turn around. Jazz had tried to run over to the table and had been intercepted by Jack, and now she was tightly enclosed in her dad's massive arms, successfully pinned against his spandex clad chest.

"No," she wailed, kicking and flailing as Jack managed to haul her away and over to a corner, his arms firmly wrapped around her middle. Maddie gave her daughter a sympathetic smile and then turned back to Danny; the teenager had practically collapsed onto the cold steel, his eyes glazed and pants coming from his bloodied mouth. The wound on his bare chest, while bandaged, was beginning to bleed and was staining the pristine cloth a bright plasma green.

"Don't do this...you don't know wha...what you're doing," the bonds around his wrists and ankles glowed green as he pulled at the silvery metal, the effort only managing to make the wound adorning his stomach burn with a fiery intensity. "You don't know who--who I really am, otherwise you wouldn't be doing this" Danny muttered, and Maddie gave him a smile that was almost motherly.

"I know exactly who you are." His eyes shot wide open, terror darkening the neon irises. "You're the Ghost Boy, the infamous Danny Phantom. You've been plaguing this town like a deadly disease for over a year now, and it's high time somebody did something about it."

Danny's look of shock darkened into an expression of utter sorrow, but it was tinged with a familiar glint of cold rage. Sighing, he tilted his head and glanced away from the redheaded woman, a scornful smile on his lips. "Yeah…" the hand clutching the syringe lowering to the crook of his arm. "That's who everybody thinks I am." Danny glanced over to where Jazz was still being restrained by their dad. The teen had tears spilling out of her aqua eyes, her mouth twisted into a grimace of pain, but she had stopped struggling. "A disease….a menace," he glanced down at his arm as Maddie hastily swabbed the skin there with a cotton swab, the needle in her other hand glinting in the light. "Go ahead, inject me with that stuff...see what your stupidity gets you."

Maddie, startled, pulled the needle back and frowned at the young halfa. "What do you mean by that?" Her violet eyes widened as she studied the contours of his face, the familiar shape and the expressive eyes that shared their every emotion.

"You...seem familiar to me," she frowned at him, but Danny stared listlessly at her, green eyes narrowed into cool slits.

"DANNY!" Jazz came out of nowhere, and she pushed at Maddie and made her slam into the chrome table. "Mom, you can't do it...he's, he's Danny!" Maddie blinked, her eyes narrowing as she frowned at the distraught teenager.

"Yes, I know...his name is Danny Phantom." Jazz slowly shook her head, and as if time had gone into slow mode Maddie inch by inch turned to stare at the boy she realized, with a sickening feeling growing in her stomach, looked an awful lot like her son...

"No, no! It can't be...this can't possibly be Da...Danny," she choked, her lip quivering as her gaze returned to his face, the face she now recognized as that of her one and only son.

"Oh my...what did I...what was I going to…"

"Mom!" Maddie had already noticed what her daughter was pointing at. From Danny's arm rose the syringe, the needle tip imbedded deep into the boy's flesh...the syringe was empty, the clear plastic totally spotless and missing its former package of red goo. "Oh no…when I bumped you," Jazz whispered, horror clear in her aqua eyes.

"We did it!" The three barely acknowledged Jack Fenton as he came waltzing over to the table, his trademark grin plastered on his lips. That look soon faded as he saw the tears flowing from both Jazz and Maddie's eyes, replaced with one of worry and slight suspicion. "What's going on," he asked. Danny glanced up at him, his face contorting into an expression of pain as what appeared to be red lightening began crackling along his skin. He started to thrash against the metal bonds holding him firm to the table, a long howl of pain escaping his lips and ringing off the basement walls.

"Danny!" Maddie desperately pressed a button on the side of the table; the bonds snapped off and she tried to grab the bucking teen, but Danny cried out and rolled away, falling off the table and landed with a SMACK on the floor. The three rounded the table and watched as he kneeled on all fours on the icy concrete, his breath coming in ragged pants and sweat plastered on his pale face.

"I don't understand, what's the big deal?" Jack stuttered, staring dumbfounded as Jazz and Maddie fell down beside the teen. He stepped towards the two women and the panting halfa on the floor, blue gaze narrowing as Jack stared at the bloody mass that was once Danny's back. "He may not survive the test, with a wound like that."

"Jack...how can you say that?! This boy is our baby!" Maddie screamed, cradling her face in her hands.

The orange jumpsuit lad man stared blankly down at them. "Maddie. This is a ghost." Jack ignored his wife's scream of rage and reached for the needle imbedded in Danny's skin.

"Stay...away...from me…" he drew back, the family staring wide eyed as Danny slowly scooted around to face them, a low growl rumbling in the teen's throat. He shuddered as another wave of burning pain coursed throughout his young body, a ragged hiss tearing from his throat. "I war...warned you…" he managed to gasp, "But you...**you **_**idiots**_," His words ended mid sentence as they were replaced with a earth shattering cry, his irises glowing and flashing from green to red.

As the cry continued it grew louder and louder, growing so ear shattering that the three clenched them in an attempt to block out the sound. Danny broke off the scream right when a spark of energy started to emerge past his lips, instead slumping to the floor in a motionless heap, his white hair gleaming against the dull gray stone.

"Danny, my baby!" Maddie scrambled to her son's side. His pale face loomed up at her, dark circles stained under his closed eyes and lips slightly parted. The only sound coming from the battered halfa were mewls of pain and the occasional moan, but each tore at the Fenton women like a knife in the heart.

"Maddie, don't be hysterical. This is a ghost, nothing more!"

Jazz glared at her father and pushed him aside, desperately grabbing Maddie's shoulders and brutally shaking the crying woman. "Mom, don't you have an antidote?"

Maddie slowly shook her head.

"Aghhhh!" The two adults both flinched when the girl let loose a terrifying scream, her eyes practically flashing with rage as she slammed a fist against the floor. "How could you not have an antidote?"

"We...we never thought we would need it...after all, Ecto Reverso was only meant to be used on bad ghos…" she quickly snapped her mouth shut when Jazz pierced her with an angry scowl. The teenager took a deep breath, but it came out as a harsh sob.

"How...why…" was all she could manage to choke out before she fell willingly into her mother's arms. Jack was still glancing from them and his collapsed son, a confused expression permanently marring his face.

"_**Ughhh**_**…" **the long groan caught all three's attention, and they glanced up in time to see Danny slowly push himself into a sitting position. A hand was grasping his face, the other splayed out over the wound running alongst his chest.

Jazz, a hesitant hand reaching out to touch the halfa, recoiled when he let out a low snarl. "Danny?" She whispered, and he glanced up at the group, hair shadowing his pale face.

"Danny," Maddie echoed softly, teeth biting so hard into the flesh of her lip that blood welled up from the tiny wound. "Danny?"

Through the hair they could see him grin, and a wave of dark blood red energy suddenly shot from his body and slammed into the three. Jazz, Maddie, and Jack all let out pained screams as they were thrown into the far wall besides the portal and fell into heaps to the floor.

As the dust around them started to clear Jazz managed to raise her head, eyes widening in horror as the familiar form of her brother emerged. But, what she saw only made her want to recoil and scream like a frightened child. "No...Danny," she felt herself cringe when the dust finally settled. Danny stood beside the table, his chest completely healed of all wounds and totally blood free, but his eyes...Jazz couldn't help but stare at the once neon green orbs that had made her smile on countless occasions, the face that had become a heartthrob amongst Danny Phantom fangirls.

"**Hello Jazz," **he grinned, his tongue lightly caressing the fangs emerging from his teeth, dark eyes flashing a bright red. **"And goodbye."**

**End of chapter 1**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Danny's voice is now in bold.**

The explosion was what drew their attention. Sam and Tucker, who had been walking peacefully down the street towards FentonWorks, nearly jumped out of their skins when the massive **BOOM **suddenly rang out through the air.

"What was that?" Tucker glanced at his companion in confusion, but the goth girl merely shrugged. Another loud crash echoed across the buildings, and when a trio of screams followed the sound, the two teenagers both took of running. Sam let out a shrill cry as they drew close enough to see FentonWorks shaking and trembling, another crash sounding from inside the structure.

"Tucker, what if Danny's in there," she cried, purple eyes widening in horror. The young African American stared at the building in shock when another long scream came from inside, this time a very familiar and powerful cry the two had come to recognize...Danny's ghostly wail. Before they could move away, a blast of dark red energy exploded and broke through the front door, nearly blasting apart the wall and successfully shattering the windows into tiny bits of glass.

Sam and Tucker let out yowls of pain as they were lifted into the air and thrown to the ground, landing on the sidewalk in a jumble of broken brick and shards of glass.

"Ow…" with a groan Tucker raised his head off the concrete, wincing as he felt a burning pain above his eyebrow. Blood slowly dripped down his face and fell in drops to the ground, staining the gray concrete with bright red spots. "Sam...you ok?" A dull moan was his only answer, and with a grimace Tucker glanced around the field of shattered brick and glittering glass; Sam lay several feet from him, her black clothes and hair marred with dust and granules of glass. "Sam?" Tucker called, and he breathed a long sigh of relief as the goth slowly raised her head.

"Tucker?" He nodded, letting out a hiss of pain as he climbed up off the ground. Sam, unhurt save for a small cut running across her arm, grabbed Tucker's and rose up from the sidewalk. "That was Danny's ghostly wail," she murmured, "but I've never seen it that powerful." Tucker nodded, eyes narrowing as he stared at the twisted and broken shrapnel littering the street.

"Yeah...and it was red." He frowned, too busy pondering those two details to notice that Sam start walking towards the house. At the sound of her shout he broke out of the trance, his eyes widening as he saw his friend standing on the doorstep of FentonWorks.

"Sam, what're you…"

"Come on Tucker," she called, and he followed after her with a long sigh. Together the two teens slowly descended into the house, hesitation written across their faces as they neared the basement door.

"You...you sure you wanna go down there?" Tucker flashed an uneasy look at the shadowed doorway, but it faded as a harsh slap landed on his shoulder. "Ow! What was that for?!"

"Tucker, we have to see if Danny's ok! He might be hurt!"

Tucker continued to scowl at the teen's back when she began descending the stair into the basement, but finally he let out a long sigh and following after her.

"Geez, you can't see a thing through all this dumb dust," Sam remarked, pausing on the final step and peering out into the room. The dust hovered like mist, shrouding everything in the room, and the teens shuddered at the eerie feeling that swiftly descended over them. Straining, Sam finally managed to see a hazy form through the dust, and she quickly ran towards it. "Tucker! You've gotta come see this!" Sam laid a hand on the slumped figure, yelping when her hand came back slick with a warm liquid.

"Sam, what is it!?"

She choked, bile rising in her throat. "The--there's someone--oh no--I think it's Danny's mom!"

Tucker came running over to her side and winced, staring down at the bloodied figure lying motionless on the ground. "Who…who would do this?"

"I don't know, but we need to call an ambulance and find Danny."

"**Aw Sam, that's cruel. Shouldn't you make finding your best friend your first priority?" **The voice echoed through the room, cold and eerily seductive. Sam let out a choked gasp when a pair of eyes came into view, the eyelids rimmed in black and the irises a dark ruby red, and she felt Tucker grasp at her hand, his face pale beneath the dark pallor. **"Come, Sammy, surely you care more about Danny than that,"** he drawled, and the teen let out a snarl at the sound of her nickname.

"Ok, I don't know who you are or what you want, but nobody but Danny can call me that…and he usually gets his butt kicked anyways!" Sam yelled at the shadowed figure, but it only chuckled and took a few more steps out of the dust.

"**I guess I don't have a problem then."** Sam flashed a look of disgust at the red eyed phantom, but curiosity was written all over her face. Evidently the figure noticed, for he let out a short laugh that positively made Sam's skin crawl. **"You want to know who I am?" **As if against her will Sam nodded. **"Of course you do. You are familiar with the phrase curiosity killed the cat, however?"**

"I'm no cat."

"**No. I suppose not. You're more like a raging lioness, what with that nasty temper of yours. Honestly, I'm amazed that you haven't tried to lash out at me yet, especially since it was because of me that they're like that."** He didn't have to specify; Sam knew who he was talking about. With another harsh laugh, the shadowed figure took several steps out of the dust, but his body was still shrouded in gray, making it impossible to identify him. **"Tell me, Sammy, what do you think happened down here?"**

"I--I don't know," she glared at him, gripping the boy's hand beside her. "But I'm sure you had something to do with it!"

"Sam…we should get out of here. We need to call the police and find Danny," Tucker hurriedly whispered into her ear, trying to ignore the frightening red gaze trailed on him, the irises angrily flashing.

"**Oh, believe me, you found him." **The phantom snickered at their frightened expressions, and his eyes glimmered with cruelty as he watched them glance behind them, searching for the body of their best friend. **"Relax. He's not dead. Well…not all the way, at least. I mean, doesn't being a halfa insinuate being half dead?" **

Tucker and Sam exchanged shocked looks. "You're a halfa too?!"

Red eyes flickered as the phantom stared at them through the dust, which was slowly dissipating and had revealed the cunning smirk on the lower half of his face. **"Besides the cheesehead, I'd say I'm the only ****halfa…..****" **he murmured, slashing an alabaster hand through the dust and fully revealing his pale, red eyed countenance framed by shaggy white hair.

"Danny?!" Sam and Tucker cried simultaneously, staring at the changed face of their best friend.

He smirked and brushed the remaining tendrils of dust away.** "In the ghostly flesh."**

"No….there's no way. You can't be Danny! You're just a ghost impersonating him." Sam shook her head defiantly and scowled at him, purple eyes suspiciously gazing at the sneering boy in front of her.

"Yeah, and you did a sucky job! Danny doesn't look anything like that," Tucker threw in.

Danny grinned at them, laughing at their shocked expressions when his razor sharp fangs were revealed. **"Oh really? You don't believe that I am the real ****Danny Phantom?" **They shook their heads, and he let out a dramatic sigh. **"Pity. I suppose I'll have to prove it. Perhaps a demonstration of my knowledge about you two would be sufficient?" **He tapped a finger against his temple, but Sam looked skeptical, while Tucker just appeared stunned.

"And how would tha--"

"**In the seventh grade, Tucker was the one who stole the special candy your mom bought for you in Japan. Remember, Sam? He lied and told you I did it, and you punched me in the eye." **Danny nodded at the stunned black boy, who flinched when angry purple eyes turned his way. **"And Sam, you were the one who convinced me to go into the portal which gave me my powers, and you were also the one who messed with my jumpsuit the second time around and put this emblem on it." **He plucked the front of his shirt, the DP insignia a familiar sight to the two startled teenagers.

Tucker, desperately trying to unlock the pale fist that now had a grip on his shirt, yelped and gave Danny a confused grimace. "Hey! How come you made me get in trouble and not her?!"

"**Because I love seeing her get angry at you." **Putting a finger against his lips in a mocking gesture of pondering, Danny turned to Sam and grinned.** "In the eighth grade, Tucker told everyone in school that you and I were dating to get back at you for beating him at bowling and winning his allowance." **Seeing Tucker's shocked-and scared-expression, he crossed his arms and sneered. **"Sam, you were also the one who made me lose my powers when you told Desiree that you wished you'd never met me. Right?" **

The girl didn't have to say anything; the look on her face gave him all the answer he needed.** "Now, is that enough proof for the two of you, or would you like me to tell you any more information? Maybe like the time Tucker" **

"No, dude, that's ok!" Tucker shot a frightened look at Sam, but his gaze slowly revolved back onto the white haired boy, with Sam's following. Who, it finally hit them, had actually told them knowledge only Danny would know.

"DANNY?!"

"Is that really you!?"

"Dude, what the heck happened to you?!"

Danny glanced from Sam to Tucker and flashed the aqua eyed boy a cold grin, pointed fangs gleaming in the dull light. **"Let's just say I had a...change of heart. Or, perhaps the better phrase would be a change of mind****," **he chuckled, brushing a speck of dust off his bare arm. **"Oh, and Tucker, do me a favor. Get your hands off Sam."**

"But…why?"

Dark eyes began to glow a brilliant garnet red, and the halfa's lips curled up into a broad sneer. **"In case you're planning on questioning my every action, let me be very specific****…" **Danny's brow furrowed and he bared his sharp canines, a low growl rumbling in his throat. **"Remove them in the next three seconds or I'll rip them off." **

Tucker immediately dropped her hand and stepped back an inch, giving Sam a scared grimace as he did.

The feral look on Danny's face disappeared, and he looked downright as he rapped the fingers of his hand against his thigh. **"Much better. See how easier it is to listen without questioning?"**

Sam and Tucker didn't respond, instead choosing to glance the halfa up and down. Their eyes widened in a mingle of horror, fear, and twisted approval-mostly in Sam's-as they took a good look at the startling changes that had overcome the teen.

Besides his burning red eyes, Danny now had black tips highlighting his normally snow white hair, and the gleaming locks had fallen out of their normal hairdo and now laid casually around his shoulders, several strands obscuring his unnaturally pale face.

The hazmat suit, once as much of his trademark as the DP insignia, was gone. A dark red had taken its place, one that snugly hugged Danny's chest and revealed all of the wiry muscles that had come with months of ghost fighting. Surprisingly, the DP emblem was still emblazoned on the shirt, but now the symbol was pitch black with a white edge. Baggy black pants hung over shining leather combat boots with silver buckles, the solid black broken by a gleaming silver belt with a white DP buckle. Over the whole ensemble Danny wore a sleeveless black leather coat that fell in gleaming folds to the floor, the shoulders decorated with inch high silver spikes.

Danny smirked, watching their eyes return to his face and stare at the red irises that glowed and cast his alabaster white skin with a bloody pallor. He ran a hand through his multicolored hair, the palm and wrist covered by a fingerless leather glove. Giving Sam a casual wink, he tucked a strand of hair behind his ear and revealed a row of silver hoops pierced into the flesh.

"**Like the new look? I told you I had a change of mind, but with it came a change of clothes," **he lowered his hand and gave it a flick; a ball of red energy erupted in his palm., looking uncannily like fire. **"Personally I dig the threads, and the new firepower, but of course I'm dying**** to know your opinions," **Danny grinned at the two, bloody eyes narrowing as Sam and Tucker took an unconscious step away from him.

"Dude, why did this happen," Tucker stammered, wincing as Danny turned to gaze at him. The halfa idly raised his other hand, flexing the bare fingers and chuckling at the worried looks that had appeared on Tucker's face.

"**Now where would be the fun if I told you that? But," **he let out a melodramatic sigh, totally out of place on a face marred by that evil grin, **"I suppose you could always ask my loving parents. Oh wait," **Danny faked a shocked expression, **"that might be kinda hard, considering that I put them out of commission. But I guess you found that out the hard way."**

With a wave of his hand the rest of the dust in the air dissipated, and Sam let out a shrill scream as the figures of Jazz, Maddie, and Jack fully emerged. All three were sprawled across the floor, the gray stone stained bright red with splattered blood. Grimacing, she glanced at her palm and nearly screamed as she saw the blood and torn flesh dripping down her fingers.

"**You know, the ironic thing is I tried to warn them, but they refused to listen to the oh so villainous Danny Phantom,"** Danny added, his smirk widening with every second. **"Well, guess who's the bad boy now!" **

"Danny, how could you do this?!" Sam yelled at the halfa, but Danny merely shrugged and leaned casually against the basement wall, the blood slickening the walls sullying his bare arms.

"**Hey, they were in my way, so I…" **he slashed a finger across his throat, cackling hysterically as he watched his friend's eyes widen.

Sam let out a choked sob, but that only made Danny laugh harder. "Danny!" Startled, she jumped up from the floor, hands balled into fists by her sides. "This isn't like you," she cried, lunging at the halfa. Danny let out an irritated sigh when Sam grabbed his arms, her nails digging into his skin. "Danny, please, please tell me what's happened to you," she begged, pleadingly gazing into his face. He stared back stoically, but Sam thought she saw his eyes flicker pale blue. However, she blinked and they were still dark red, so she passed it off as nothing more than a trick of the light.

"**And why would I want to do that? So you can try to help me," **Danny smirked at her, grabbing the front of her tank top and pulling her close. **"I don't want you to help me. I like being this way." **

"Sam!"

Danny let out a snarl when Tucker came flying towards the two, and with a harsh shove sent Sam flying to the floor. **"Oh please, do you really think that you're a match for me****," **he chuckled, raising a hand. **"Don't make me laugh!" **Dark ectoplasm appeared in his palm, and Danny swiftly tossed the glowing energy at the frightened teenager, his smile widening as Tucker was slammed into the far wall.

Groaning, the teen collapsed to the floor by Danny's parents and sister, smoke swirling off his clothes.

"Tucker! Danny, please stop!" Sam cried from the floor, blood streaming down her arm and dripping onto her legs. When he shot her a cold glare, she tried to scoot away, but in a swish of leather Danny leaned down and grasped her by the arms.

"**You know, I would hate to have to destroy you," **Danny hoisted Sam to her feet, pulling the goth up against his chest. **"In fact, I would prefer to have you by my side…"** he murmured, the seductive hue in his voice making shivers race down Sam's spine. Fingers grasped her chin and forced her to look up, to stare into his dark red eyes. **"Tell me, Sammy, would you like to see what other skills I have acquired?" **Before she could respond Danny had crushed his lips to hers. A rich taste flooded her mouth, like chocolate spiced with mulled wine, and Sam shuddered and unconsciously grabbed the halfa by the shoulders and pulled him closer, feeling his tongue slip into her mouth.

"Dan...Danny." She let out a sigh, the feeling of Danny's hands running down her back making her moan into his mouth. But, she yelped when she felt him toying with the edge of her shirt, lifting the black cloth away from her flesh. "Danny, what're you doing?!" Sam pulled away, panic beginning to color her voice. "Stop!"

"**Now why would I want to do that…" **he slipped a hand under her shirt, the silkiness of her flesh against his making the halfa growl in response.

SMACK!

Danny's head swung back, a bright red hand mark imprinted on his face. Sam, her breath coming in ragged gasps, stumbled away from him and nearly fell to the floor. **"Did, did you...just...slap...me…"** Danny growled, his fists erupting in ectoplasmic energy. His eyes began to glow a dangerous shade of red, the leather of his coat flapping as he took a step towards the goth. But, he stopped a mere inch from her, his head cocking and lips pulling down into a tight frown. Sam blinked, her surprise evident, but she took advantage of his pause and ran over to Tucker, unable to hold back her sigh of relief when she saw his chest steadily rising and falling.

Danny suddenly let out a hushed stream of curses, all ones no one would have ever imagined leaving the boy's lips. **"Who the hell contacted the police," **his gaze snapping over to the wide eyed girl.** "Did you or Tucker call them," **he snarled, rage coloring his cool voice.

"No...we...I...we didn't think to. We wanted to--to make sure you were okay," she whispered.

"**Really? Well then, it must have been the explosion. My powers were a bit more damaging than I realized they would be." **Glancing back down, Danny abruptly gave Sam a breathtaking smile, though it was somewhat diminished by his demonic eyes. **"So. Care to explain why you slapped me?"**

That was unexpected. "I….I," she couldn't make the words leave her mouth, so she forced her brow to furrow into the fearful glare that usually had him running instead. Danny didn't run away. He laughed and strutted across the concrete towards her, the energy fading from his hands. Kneeling down, his eyes narrowed as he glanced her over, his mouth twitching when he heard her gasp at his obvious audacity.

"**So eloquent. What happened to the Sam who always speaks her mind?" **He sneered, but his eyes snapped to the side when he heard something else. Something else he really did not want to hear. **"Well well, seems that miss know-it-all's awake," **Danny's irises glowed, the searing gaze fixated on his sister; the girl was slumped on the floor, but slowly she started to push herself up, letting out a moan of pain as her tear filled eyes locked with his fiery ones. A large gash ran down the span of her face, dripping red down her cheek and onto her curled hands, and several burns and miniature cuts were slashed across her pelvis and abdomen. **"I thought you were dead." **

Jazz let out a pained whimper as she shoved away from the wall, a panicked frown painted on her scarlet lips. "Danny, I'm so sorry! I, I didn't know what Mom and Dad had planned! I wouldn't have helped if I,"

"**Shut it, Jazz. I don't give a fuck about your sob story," **he spat.

Jazz winced, but her expression turned determined as she stared at the demonic version of her brother, and then at Sam, who was staring at her confusedly. "Danny, you have to find a cure! You're not bad! This is just the drug talking!"

"**On the contrary, Jazz. This is**** me talking. Which me is debatable, I suppose, but, regardless, this is me. I'm not being controlled by a ghost or some spell. The Danny before you is the true Danny Phantom, leather and all."**

"But Danny, I, I think the Ecto-Reverso only affected your ghost half!"

"**Oh really…" **Danny faked a loud yawn, but the anger flickering like fire in his irises couldn't be mistaken. He looked about ready to strangle the redhead.

"Yes!" Jazz seemed oblivious to the anger flowing off him, or else she was too frantic to care. "Ecto-Reverso was designed to only work on ghosts, not humans! Since it was administered to your ghost half, it was affected, but your human half wasn't!"

"Jazz, what are you talking about? What's all this about Ecto--Ecto Reverso?" Sam glanced between them, but they were too busy gazing at each other to notice her confused stare.

"**Oh, big deal. I'll just have to take care not to change back," **he mocked, but a flicker of worry had awakened in his bloody eyes.

Jazz's face turned pale, and she desperately grabbed at his arm. "Danny, no! If you don't do something, your human half will try to take control! It--it's like a split personality! Staying in ghost form for too long would be too huge of a strain on your psyche! There's no way you could remain totally sane," she cried, her fingers wrapping around his wrist.

"Danny, you should listen to her…" Sam started, but her voice broke when a seething pair of red eyes went her way.

"Danny, please! I know what I'm talking about! I was the one who told Mom and Dad about how the inner mind could be affected, and I,"

"**Thank you for reminding me of your betrayal. And believe me, I understood everything you just said." **He glared at the redhead, feeling a sense of pride when she gasped in shock. **"After all, I wasn't just affected emotionally. The Ecto-Reverso also altered my cerebral cortex, which changed my thinking abilities. You'd be surprised how much I can actually understand now, including all that you and our dear mother have said." **

Danny let out a guttural snarl and shot a hand out, his fingers wrapping around Jazz's throat and crushing her windpipe. Screaming, Sam made a move for her, but Danny easily knocked her aside with his arm and sent her sprawling painfully to the floor several feet away, her forehead knocking against the concrete.

"**What you don't seem to understand, Jazz, is that I couldn't give a flying fuck about a damn thing you just said! I have no intention of returning to my goody two shoes persona! And if my human half is going to become as big of a pain as you said, then I'll just have to nip the problem in the bud," **he chuckled, baring his pointed fangs.

Tightening his fingers, Danny held up his other hand and it exploded with ectoplasm, the red energy congealing and forming a spike of crackling plasma. Jazz let out a sickening scream when the point was thrusted into her side, the energy cutting a hole deep into her skin. "Ahhhh! Danny! It--it hurts! Aghh! Please!" She blindly grabbled for his wrist, but Danny pulled his hand back and slid the spike out of her, letting the blood gush from the ragged wound. "Da--Danny--" she choked, her body falling limp in his grasp. Cackling, he threw Jazz aside, watching with a bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes as her body slammed into the wall and fell to the floor.

"**That looked like it hurt."**

From the concrete she let out a dull groan, and on shaky arms she tried to push herself up, but she was barely to her knees when she went crashing back to the ground. Through bleary eyes she saw Danny standing over her, one of his booted feet lodged firmly in the small of her back.

"**I'd stay down if I were you. After all, I have no qualms about killing you. It's in my nature,"** he cheerfully grinned, giving her a swift kick in the ribs before strutting away. Booted feet thudded against the blood splashed concrete as he walked over to Sam's fallen form, where she lay groaning on the cool floor. **"You, however, are a much different story."**

"Da--Danny--?" Sam raised her head, wincing as she felt blood trickle down her cheek.

Danny slid down onto his knees and brushed a finger over the tiny wound. **"Sorry about that. I didn't mean for you to get hurt."**

"Why…."

"**Why what?"**

"Why everything. Why did this happen? Why did you attack your parents and Jazz? Why do you even care if I got hurt?!" She started to scream at him, but a gloved hand pressed over her mouth and cut off the tirade.

"**For the first two, you can ask Jazzy-pants when she's able to speak without moaning in pain every few seconds. The wound won't kill her. I didn't hit anything vital, and the wound is cauterized. As for your last question, it should be pretty obvious, Sammy, seeing as how you share the same-"**

THUMP

Both teens jumped and glanced up at the ceiling. Loud thuds could be heard upstairs, repeatedly sounding in a rough pattern.

"**Somebody's here. Probably the police. Figures they'd come at the least inopportune time," **Danny rolled his eyes. Sam frowned, mentally trying to discern what the boy had been about to say. **"Damn. Guess that's my cue."**

"Your cue?"

"**Yeah. You can't tell, but I'm actually hurt. My body's a canvas for cuts and burns right now. In fact, some have already healed over here on my arms," **he pointed to his arm, and, sure enough, there were white lines slashed on the pale flesh.** "Most of wounds aren't as bad as they were earlier, but there're still a few spots that could use some more healing time." **

The goth felt her heart race when he stood up and walked away from her, heading towards the portal. He slammed a fist into the unlock button and portal doors slid open, filling the room with a bright green light.

"**Take care of yourself until we meet again. And make sure Jazz explains how I came to be the most fucked up ghost to ever grace this world. It's partly her doing." **Waving, Danny tossed a fireball of ectoplasm at the console and flew into the portal, the doors permanently snapping shut behind him. Hissing, molten metal dripped to the floor from the ruined panel; the only way to open and close the portal was destroyed.

'Meaning we can't go after him. He has to come to us.'

"Ughhh…" Tucker's faint moan and Jazz's intermingled, blending together into groans of pain as they both sat up and glanced her way. Sam hurried over to Tucker first, sighing in relief as she saw he was, for the most part, unhurt. Switching over to Jazz, she kneeled down on the ground beside her and eyed the singed wound on her side, which was now just barely oozing blood.

"Don't--don't worry about it. I think Danny meant to cauterize the wound when he stabbed me. Ughh, so wha...what happened? Where's is he," she groaned, pressing a hand against the wound and hissing as it throbbed painfully.

"He went through the portal, and destroyed the console while he was at it. Without your parents, there's no way…" Sam cut off, her eyes growing wide as she glanced at the fallen Fentons. She'd forgotten all about them!

"They're alive. Barely."

"We're all alive." Lumbering over, Tucker joined the two girls and plopped down onto the floor beside them, a hand pressed against a cut on his forehead. "So. What're we gonna do now?"

**End of Chapter 2**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Note: bold italics (full sentences only!) is the human half inside Danny's mind. Except when Danny's talking and there are occasional italicized words. That's still Danny not his human half. **_

"Ok, let me get this straight." Tucker took his hat off and ran a hand over his short hair, a tired look on his face. Leaning back in his chair, he stared at the other two teenager and took a sip from the bottle of water in his hand. "Your parents invented this, umm," Tucker glanced at Jazz, grinning sheepishly. "What's it called again?"

"Ecto-Reverso."

"Right. Ecto-Reverso. Anyways, they were going to inject him with it and turn him good, but you came in and stopped them."

"And then the needle accidentally stuck him when you tried to push your mom out of the way, and Danny was turned evil, which explains why he attacked you and your parents, and why his appearance changed." Sam finished, giving the redhead a despairing look. "Jazz, how could you be so stupid? Weren't you even a little suspicious when they started asking you questions dealing with _psychology_? Since when do they care about anything like that?!"

Jazz blushed, a sad smile forming on her lips. "Honestly, I wasn't thinking. They hadn't been hunting ghosts in a while, and I didn't see them making any new weapons, so I just assumed nothing suspicious was going on. And it wasn't uncommon for Mom to ask me questions about psychology, since she knew I was interested in it, so…."

"Basically, you were stupid and naïve and you gave them the grounds they needed to make Ecto-Reverso," Sam glared at her, but the girl only nodded.

"I didn't make it, but it was because of my knowledge that Ecto-Reverso was created."

Sighing, the three slumped around the kitchen table. "Well, it doesn't matter anyways," Sam said. "We should focus on how we're going to return Danny to normal."

"My parents said that they had no cure."

"But, couldn't we just inject him with more Ecto-whatever it's called," Tucker frowned at the worried look that appeared on Jazz's face. "What?"

She sighed, rubbing a bruised hand against her forehead. "I'm pretty sure that what was injected into Danny was the only Ecto-Reverso our parents had," Jazz glanced at Sam. "Worse, I'm not even sure if another injection would work."

"Why not? I don't see--"

"Because of what it does…" Sam whispered, and Jazz nodded.

"Ecto-Reverso, judging by the scarce information I could deduce, alters the cerebral cortex and,"

"Uh, Jazz? You may be a genius, but we're not." Gesturing to himself and Sam, Tucker grinned and tapped a finger to his skull.

"Oh, right. Ok. In the brain, there are both dominant and suppressed areas. Ecto-Reverso is designed to give control of the brain, therefore the person, over to the suppressed area. In Danny's case, the Ecto-Reverso slipped into his mind and switched control over to the"

"The evil part."

Jazz stared into narrowed purple eyes, feeling the anger and sorrow radiating off the beautiful irises. "Honestly, Danny was right when he said that he wasn't being controlled or overpowered by something. That monster we saw _was _Danny…the other Danny."

"That was not Danny!"

Sighing, Jazz reached out and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Not the Danny that you and I know, but it was him nonetheless. In everyone, there is a good and evil side. What we saw was Danny's evil side brought to life. But, back to what Tucker was saying." She sat back in her chair and gazed at the two. "If what I guessed is true, then I'm thinking that the Ecto-Reverso was also designed to form a series of blocks around the mind, protecting the newly activated area from being suppressed again. Dad…well, Mom would have made sure that no one could turn a good ghost evil again by designing the drug to prevent such a thing from occuring."

"What you're trying to say is that even if we injected him again, the Ecto-Reverso wouldn't do anything."

"Yes. But this is just a theory," Jazz pointed out. "I can't be sure of anything, especially not without Mom and Dad's notes. I haven't been able to find them."

"You think Danny stole them?" Sam frowned at her, and Jazz only sighed.

"It's a good possibility. But it doesn't matter anyway. What we need is a cure, something made to break down the blocks protecting his mind and give Danny's good side control again."

"Oh yeah, and who's gonna make that for us," Tucker rolled his eyes. "Your parents are in the hospital, and there's no way any of us could do it. I may know technology, but this is a totally different field, and Sam, you and Jazz are just as clueless as I am."

The three teens exchanged long groans, despair practically printed on their faces. Sam glared at the table top, drumming her fingers on the polished surface, but as she did her eyes slowly narrowed, her mouth curving down into a stern grimace.

"There is someone…" she muttered, and Jazz and Tucker glanced at her in suprise. "There's only one person I know who could help us," Sam said, a note of determination-and slight disgust-beginning to color her voice. "Plasmius."

"The Frootloop?! Sam, are you nuts," they cried, and the goth winced as they jumped up from the table. Really, with two shocked teenagers standing over her, even Sam felt a little nervous. But, she too rose to her feet and stood staring boldly at the two, ignoring the is-she-crazy looks Tucker was shooting her.

"No, I'm not. Plasmius is the only person we know with the kind of technology needed to make a cure for the Ecto-Reverso...we just have to convince him to do it," Sam stated smartly, and almost as if it pained her, Jazz nodded in agreement.

"Sam's right. But, how are we supposed to get him to agree to help us?"

"And, funnily enough, if we do manage to convince him, how are we going to make Danny take it? The way his mind works now, Danny's probably going to experience a new sense of freedom that he hasn't felt in a while." Jazz paused for a second, blue eyes flickering as she shot the two a concerned stare. "Even worse, his powers will probably be accelerating at an alarming rate. He'll have mastered at least a few new abilities within the week, maybe even a couple of days."

"Why do you say that," Tucker asked, and the redhead frowned.

"Without a conscience or concern for people weighing him down, his powers won't be tied down or restrained. In this state, Danny's likely to experience a large burst of power, maybe even reaching full potential if he's left evil for too long. I'd say that, within a week, maybe less, Danny'll have a few more powers mastered."

Sam scowled, but tendrils of concern were swirling in her amethyst eyes. "Then we need to try and think of a way to convince Plasmius to help us as soon as possible."

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

(an hour earlier)

Danny floated through the ghost zone, lazily sweeping his eyes over a packet of papers paper clipped together and stained with coffee and a green residue he was sure was a type of ectoplasm. He idly raised the hand not holding the papers and shot a dart of ectoplasm out of his fingers, glancing away from the printed text and watching the beam hit a boulder and exploding it into shattered bits of rock, a bored expression on his face.

"**Ok, I've gotta think of something," **Danny muttered, shooting another ectoplasm beam and hearing it hit something to his left; he didn't even bother to look. **"According to this data, Ecto-Reverso barricaded the half of my mind that's in control, meaning another dose wouldn't work. That's good, for me," **he smirked, but his brow furrowed as he scanned the typed pages.** "However, Ecto-Reverso was designed to work on ghosts, not humans, so it was only this half that was affected….fuck." **

Groaning, the halfa lazily ran a glowing hand through his hair, barely feeling the heat from the ectoplasm against his scalp.

"**Ok, my human half definitely needs to be taken care of, but there's only a few ways to do it. I could kill him, but that could come back to bite me in the ass. I might end up like my other self." **Danny stuffed the papers into his coat pocket..** "I could try to find a way to turn him evil before he tries to take control, but that could prove to be very challenging. I'd probably need more Ecto-Reverso. And I'm definitely not able to make stuff like that, even with the data I stole from my parents and my newfound intelligence." **Letting out a frustrated sigh, Danny slashed his hand out and a wave of red energy flew from his palm. Going haywire, it slammed into a nearby purple door, blasting it wide open (and partially to bits). Curiosity getting the better of him, Danny floated over and glanced inside, his red eyes widening in shocked-and pleased-surprise. **"Well, well, well...Clockwork's little hideout." **

The large castle looking building was just the way he remembered it; all glowing green with floating clock gears. Danny flew into the vast abyss and quietly glanced around his surroundings, but it was silent. Flying forward, he dived through one of the castle windows and somersaulted, landing neatly on the floor with a quiet thud.

"**Hello? Anyone home?" **He glanced around the room, but there was no sign of the cloaked ghost that haunted the domain. A gray light drew Danny's attention, however. Glancing towards it, he sneered when he saw the viewing screens Clockwork used to glance at the different timelines. At the moment the screen that had once shown his future was blank, but Danny had a vivid memory of seeing his future self in its glowing depths.

"**I can't believe how ignorant I was," **he growled and shot a ectoplasmic shot at the screen, destroying it in a blast of red smoke. **"I should have destroyed that foolish bastard when I had the chance, not locked him up in a stupid thermos." **

"_**Taking a life, even his, is never the right thing to do. But, I guess you wouldn't understand that anymore."**_

Danny froze. The voice echoed all around him, coming from nowhere in particular, but it sounded familiar. Glancing around, he sneered and flicked his wrists, letting the ectoplasm ignite around his hands and travel up his forearms. **"Who the hell are you?" **He slowly revolved around, scanning his glowing gaze over every crevice and corner in the room. No one was visibly there. **"And what do you know anyways? That bastard deserved worse than death!"**

"_**Talk about self hatred. He was**_** you**_**. An older, more screwed up version, but you nonetheless." **_

"**That bastard was not **_**me**_**. He was a mixture of the cheesehead and my ghost half, a disgusting combination that should never be allowed to walk the earth!" **He spat at the invisible entity, but the thing just laughed in its echoing voice.

"_**Is that really how you feel? Or are you just saying that 'cause he almost killed your sorry hide?**_

Danny snarled and threw a stream of ectoplasm out before him, but it harmlessly exploded against the wall, leaving only a dark scorch mark.

"_**Ahh, did I touch a nerve?" **_It chuckled, but then a serious tone entered the disjointed voice._** "Just think, everyone nearly died because of your evil self. Your family, Tucker, Mr. Lancer,"**_

"**As if I give a damn about them anymore! They all deserve to,"**

"…_**.Sam," **_the voice finished, trailing off into a soft sigh. _**"You almost lost her, and you really will if you continue on like this. Don't you see? Going through it once should've made you see that your being evil won't do either one of you any good. It'll only end in misery."**_

Hooded eyes flashed the color of spilled blood, and Danny angrily threw another round of ectoplasm into the air, but it merely hit the wall just like last time. **"I almost lost her that time because my future self was a fucking dumbass who tore out his humanity and lost himself to his fucking powers! I'm different!"**

"_**Yeah. You're in complete control. No evil ghost trying to possess you, no spells. Can't get much better than that! I'm sure Sam will love having an evil ghost as a boyfriend, after she gets over you killing everybody she ever cared about and,"**_

"**SHUT THE HELL UP!" **

Danny screamed and a whole wave of red ectoplasm shot out from his body, destroying everything in its path and cracking the stone walls. A loud rumble rang throughout the room, and he yelped as stone and twisted metal started falling from the ceiling. Danny blasted apart the falling rubble but was sent flying back as a loud explosion sounded from the other side of the room, a blast that sent twisted bars flying to the floor. **"Oww….what the hell…" **he grunted, pushing himself up into a crouch and shaking bits of metal and rock from his hair. **"What was that?"**

"Your worst nightmare."

The halfa suppressed a cry of surprise, but within a second his face broke out into a huge grin. Leaning back against the wall, Danny lifted his hand and let a glove of red ecto-fire envelop his palm and wrist, a trick that was beginning to come easily to him.

As the dust in the room cleared, another pair of red eyes peered out of the shadows, an identical set of fangs revealed with a slight curl of blue lips. "Hello Danny. Thank you _soo_ much for releasing me from the thermos. It was growing quite tiresome in there," Dan murmured, stepping out of the shadows in all his ghostly glory. Even Danny had to admit, his rival cut an imposing figure with his black and white hazmat suit, flaming hair, red eyes, and blue skin.

Dan swept his gaze up and down the halfa, the glee painfully obvious in his dark irises. "Well, this is an interesting turn of events," he finally spoke.

Danny grinned and the ectoplasm swirling around his arm glowed brighter, looking all the more like ruby fire. **"I guess you weren't expecting me to look so different. But its hard to keep the monster chained when the keepers are incompetent fools," **he smirked and leaned back against the wall, casually waving the man forward with his ignited hand. Dan smirked and all but bounded towards him, his arms arrogantly crossing over a well muscled chest as he stopped a foot away and stared at the boy.

"Look who's Mr. Tough Guy now. So much for not turning evil," he said mockingly, but Danny merely shrugged his spiked shoulders.

"**Like I said. My chains were being held by the world's two biggest idiots. It was only a matter of time."** Playfully, Danny started to juggle a ball of ectoplasm, but his smile was anything but.

Dan ignored the orb, but kept his eyes on the young halfa casually sitting against the wall. "By idiots, I can only assume you can mean our parents. They must have made another foolish mistake, for you to look like that. So, what happened, little Daniel? Did they unleash a ghost that brainwashed you? Did they hand you over for governmental experimentation?"

"**Heh. You're funny. But you couldn't be farther from the truth." **Danny threw the ball towards him and Dan neatly caught it in a gloved hand, his expression one of surprise as he glanced back up and closed his fist over the fire, extinguishing it.** "What you see before you is the real me, the one and only Danny Phantom." **Danny jabbed a finger in the air, as if to poke the older man.** "But you? You're just a mistake. A mishap caused by an unfortunate event, if you will,"** he said conversationally, but he watched and chuckled when Dan's eyes began to glow in anger. **"I mean, it's hard to believe that you were actually willing to merge with that stupid cheesehead. How pathetic can you get?" **

Now Dan was really pissed; his own hands had erupted in bright green ectoplasmic energy, which he promptly raised in front of him in a fighting stance. "You _do_ realize that you're talking about yourself," he growled, but Danny just shook his head.

"**Why does everybody insist on saying that? You **_**are not **_**me. You gave up all rights to the name Danny Phantom when you became too week to defend those we love…or in your case, loved." **Dan stared at him for a few seconds, but finally a cold smile swept across his features.

"Ah, I see...you still have that pathetic human half lodged in you." The older ghost broke out into amused laughter, shaking his head at the halfa. "And here I thought you might actually be a challenge!" Dan snickered, his smile wide and it was Danny's turn to get angry. The hair shrouding his eyes was like a black and white cloud, but even Dan could see the garnet irises warningly flash before they begin to glow.

"**You know, oddly enough, I think that I was the one who **_**beat you**_**…"** Danny grounded out, his coat flying behind him like a black cloud as he slowly stood up and glared. **"I could kick your ass then, and I can easily do it now!" **With a furious snarl, Danny hurled the fistful of red flames at his older self. Dan was thrown backwards and he roughly collided with the wall and slid to the floor, his cry of pain only making Danny laugh harder.

"Fine! You want to fight?" Dan snarled, picking himself up. In a blink of an eye he had Danny pinned to the wall by his throat, his other hand glowing with ectoplasm. "Do you honestly think you can beat me again," he grinned at the furious expression on Danny's face. "You have a better chance of killing me!"

"**Heh, I'll make you eat your words," **the younger ghoul spat before slamming his shoulder into Dan's, the spikes digging into his flesh and making him howl. **"Get ready, old man." **Danny tossed him back, the muscles in his arms rippling as he crouched into a battle stance, ecto energy erupting in his palms and snaking up his wrists. **"You're going down." **

"In your dreams."

Growling, the two flew at each other, fists glowing and eyes flaming as they pummeled each other with attack after attack. The air was filled with glowing red and green ectoplasm blasts, and both were hit with the burning energy.

Danny yowled in anger as he took a blast to the leg, a large cut instantly spreading across his thigh. It stung like crazy, but he blocked the pain and threw both arms out, tossing a massive wave of dark red ectoplasm at the flame haired ghost and hitting him full on, throwing him into a viewing screen. The metal broke and he collided with the floor, bits of the broken screen falling onto him and ripping his costume.

"Was that supposed to hurt," Dan easily picked himself up, but an ecto blast caught him in the wounded shoulder and down he went, holding a hand to the bleeding limb. "That was a cheap shot."

"**All's fair in war."**

"Idiot. The expression is all's fair in _love_ and war." Dan flew at him and shot an ecto blast, neatly nailing him in the arm. Hissing at the pain, Danny did a quickly front flip and barely missed having Dan slam into him. His body curved gracefully in midair as he fell back to the ground and hit Dan in the back with a whip of ectoplasm, hardening the tip with a spear of ice as it slashed his skin and drawing bright green blood. Dan stumbled a bit but caught his balance, whirling around to glare at his younger counterpart with raging garnet eyes.

"**Since we're not in love, I thought my version was more appropriate," **Danny smirked, a ball of ectoplasm glowing in his hand.

"Love is for weak fools. But you'd know all about that, wouldn't you? You're in love with Sam." Dan sneered at the outraged look that momentarily flashed across Danny's face. "Oh, I know all about that. As hung up as my weakness was over that bitch Valerie, I always knew that he had a thing for Sam."

Danny's fists flared, but he kept his mouth shut, his lips tightly pressed together into a dark scowl.

"I personally don't see why you're interested in her," his words dripped with sarcasm, and each one was making the halfa angrier and angrier. "A ghost hunter was one thing. At least Valerie knew martial arts and was somewhat attractive! But Sam? Please."

"**Shut the hell up…" **Danny's fists were curled, his fangs bared as he growled and raised a flaming hand. **"I will kill you, make no mistake, and I'll fucking enjoy it!" **

"You can't kill me. You're weak! Pathetic! And she's just as useless as you are! Scrawny, weak, ugly! I'm surprised her parents even care for her!"

"**Shut the hell up before I rip you apart! No one insults her, especially not a fucked up ghost who's nothing more than a damn screw-up! You called me pathetic? You're the one who let a fourteen year old boy stuff you in a damn thermos!" **Danny's smile turned ferocious. He was heartily enjoying Dan's shocked expression.

The two started circling each other, each one glaring death at the other while red eyes narrowed and fists glowed.

"And a lot of good it did you. If I remember correctly, it was only because of Clockwork that your precious Sam survived. He saved her skin when you couldn't! You're just as weak as before! You may think you're all powerful and badass, but you're just a weak little boy who's way out of his league!" Dan threw his palm out and a green ectoplasm blast went flying Danny's way, and he couldn't dodge it in time. The rock wall crumbled when his body went flying against it, bits of the broken stone falling over him like rain as he slumped to the floor. "See?"

"**You've lost your touch, old man."**

Dan blinked. Danny had fallen to the floor and was kneeling on one knee, wincing in pain but wearing a satisfied smirk. Sensing it all to late, there was no way to turn intangible or move aside before a stabbing pain went flaring down his back, the sickening feeling of blood all to familiar as it slid down his flesh and stained his jumpsuit. Growling, Dan glanced behind him and glared at the copy who had his shoulder buried against his back, digging the sharp spikes deep into his lower left side.

"You do realize that this is pointless, right?"

"**Yeah. Why bother fighting me when I'm clearly the most powerful?" **Both Danny's snickered, and the one behind him gave a shove and sent Dan hurtling forward. Stumbling, the older ghost did a surprisingly agile front flip and thrusted his leg up, landing a brutal roundhouse kick in the center of Danny's chest and throwing him into the wall.

"You? Don't make me laugh!" Red eyes glowed with triumph when the halfa's expression turned to one of sheer agony as glowing green blood started to stain the front of his shirt. "You're hurt."

"**And what of it? It doesn't matter. I'm still going to beat you within an inch of your fucking life!" **Bare arms shuddered as Danny forced himself to kneel on the floor, pale hair falling across his face and blood dripping from a nasty cut on his cheek. **"I hope you enjoy pain, 'cause you're gonna be getting a hell of a lot of it."** Cupping his hands, a glow flickered in his palms and began to grow, the red ectoplasm spilling out over his fingers and cloaking them in the red energy. Pain flooded his body, but he pushed it back and forced the ectoplasm to thin, his hands twisting as if grasping a spear. Dan took a step back when the red plasma formed a long rod with a nasty looking point, which was flipped and pointed at his chest like a sword. **"Care to dance," **Danny asked, climbing to his feet and brandishing the spear.

"Such a gentleman." Dan flicked his wrists and ectoplasm shot out of his hands, morphing into green daggers within a blink of an eye. Danny eyed the vicious looking weapons, and Dan let out a cool laugh. "You're not the only one who can do that trick. Remember, I am your future self."

"**Wrong. You **_**were **_**my future self, until I destroyed that future by beating your sorry ass," **Danny expertly twirled the glowing rod in his hands, and he neatly blocked a jab from the daggers. Using it as leverage, Danny kicked off the ground and smashed his foot against Dan's cheek, feeling the bone crack beneath before he dropped back to the ground. Defying gravity, Danny held his body aloft on one hand and gave Dan a swift kick to the knee, his legs whipping out and knocking the older man off his feet.

Dan groaned as he collided with unyielding stone, his body slamming painfully against the floor and the daggers falling from his grip. Grinning wickedly, Danny kicked them aside and cockily pointed the spear point to his neck, tipping a pale face up and forcing dark eyes to meet his.

"**Need help up, old man?" **He snickered.

Snarling, a gloved hand started to glow green, but stopped as Dan stared up at the hybrid with a dark smile twisting at his thin lips. "You know, there's something I don't understand." His hooded eyes gleamed with a malicious glint. "If you're so damn powerful, then why aren't I dead?" The shadow that passed over Danny's face almost made Dan wish he could take the words back. "When I turned evil, I easily ripped my weakness apart with my bare hands. It was my first kill, and my most memorable one. The blood staining my hands fueled my rage, my lust for destruction. But you haven't even really managed to hurt me! Really, are you so weak and useless that you can't even find the guts to,"

"**SHUT UP! JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP!!" **

Dan let out a startled cry as his younger self threw aside the spear and grabbed the neck of his jumpsuit. He was hoisted into the air, and a glowing fist was thrusted under his chin, the fiery ectoplasm scorching his flesh. **"I was not, am not, and never will be weak," **Danny snarled into his face. **"You're the weak one. You lost yourself in your fucking despair, going so far as to let that bastard merge with you! You dare to call **_**me **_**weak? I hold more power than you could ever dream of!" **

"Then kill me," came the challenge, and Danny inhumanly growled at his once future self.

"**With pleasure…" **he moved to press the glowing hand to against his neck, but the teen abruptly froze, the energy gradually dying away and leaving bare fingers just lightly skimming Dan's throat. **"Wha--what is this…?" **A pained howl tore from his throat and he desperately grabbed at his head, a shocked and terrified expression marring his porcelain features. **"**_**Aaghh**_**! Get out of my head! Get out! You fucking…**_**ahhhh!!**_**"**__

Dan, slightly shocked that he was still alive, stared down at the halfa in blunt surprise. 'What the hell is going on?!'

The white haired teenager threw his head down, fingers entwining in the shaggy locks surrounding his face and ferociously ripping several from his scalp, hoarse cries rumbled in his throat. His face, what was visible beneath his splayed fingers and palm, shifted into a crazed smile that was only made all the more demented by the streams of laughter that bubbled up from his trembling body, though his grip on Dan's collar remained oddly firm.

Honestly, it was somewhat frightening.

"_**Enough…." **_the laughter unexpectedly cut off. _**"I can't let him kill anyone." **_He breathed in a soft whisper, his voice lacking the ruthless darkness that had shrouded his tone. _**"I refuse to turn into anything even similar to you." **_he added, lowering the ghost down to his feet and releasing his jumpsuit.

Dan was filled with confusion as he gazed at the pale face shrouded by the black hinted hair; what had happened to the Danny that had just been trying to kill him? Sensing his gaze, Danny glanced up and his fingers slid away, revealing a half smile and pale, glittering, icy blue eyes.

"_**He's temporarily...under my control, but….not for long," **_he smirked, but it lacked any true animosity. _**"Listen to me. I know you hate me, and my friends, but….but it'd be a goo--good idea for you to join them."**_

"Join them? You must be truly deluded to think I'd ever do something so pathetic," Dan scoffed. Danny just frowned a little, his eyes slowly losing their brightness.

"_**If you don't join Sam and the rest, the...then my ghost half is likely to kill you."**_

"Nothing can kill me. I'm invincible."

That brought a cool smile to Danny's face, the expression so cold it could cut bone. _**"No one's invincible. There wouldn't be death if that were true, and you're….clearly dead, and I'm ha--half so. Don't be naïve." **_

Dan scowled at the young phantom, but his mind was inwardly racing as he contemplated the icy irises staring up at him. 'It doesn't make sense. He was just trying to kill me, but now? Now he's acting like his usual childish self, as if….' red eyes flicked down to sweep over the lithe form clothed in the dark attire, 'wait, he said something about his ghost half…this is his human half!"

The last words tumbled out before he could pull them back. Dan's expression shifted to one of rage as he silently cursed himself, and Danny gave a faint nod, the cool air still hovering over his own face. _**"Don't beat yourself up. You're right." **_When the older man focused back on him, Danny was frowning severely and holding a hand against his temple. _**"I can only hold him off...a little longer," **_his lips curled in disgust, stubby fingers digging into the smooth flesh of his forehead. _**"Jazz can better explain what's going on than I--than I can."**_

Dan stared at his younger self, an expression of loathing written across his face. "Fine. So you're his human half. I guessed right. But, even so, what makes you think that I would fall to a ridiculous halfa like yourself. What's stopping me from killing you now, " he snapped.

Danny chuckled.

"_**You won't kill me. You want a challenge, something I can't offer in this sta--state. And, trying to destroy my other half would only end in your demise, not his. Besides," **_the smile turned grim, unfeeling. _**"If I could capture you when I wasn't evil and technically insane….then what the heck do you think my--my ghost half's gonna do when he regains control?"**_

Red flecks were beginning to emerge in the pale sky of his irises, and Danny groaned, his voice shrouded with controlled agony.

"_**Don't make the same mistake twice, old man." **_he growled, his mouth twisting into a familiar glare. _**"He threa--threatened to kill you…he'll do it." **_His fingers fully covering his eyes now, Danny glanced away and choked back a scream, ignoring the waves of blistering pain racing down his body. _**"You'll never have a chance to--to get revenge if you don't jo---join them. As much as you ha--hate them, they--they know wha…what's wrong with me. They'll tell you, and you'll help them stop me."**_

"And if I don't?"

Danny forced himself to peer at Dan from beneath his splayed fingers, and a sick, twisted sort of macabre pleasure went surging through him when he saw the slight panic worming its way across Dan's face.

"_**Then you'll be the first one to know what it's like to die twice." **_The halfa practically spat the last part before letting out a tortured howl and grabbing a handful of his multicolored hair, severing countless strands from his scalp and mindlessly screaming while his eyes were shrouded with deep, bloody garnet.

Dan anxiously stared at the boy, his fists flaring green and covering with crackling ectoplasm. A cruel peal of laughter came from his smirking mouth as Danny took a shuffled step towards him, ectoplasm sparkling in his palms.

"**So inconvenient, that other half. However, I rather like his idea of you dying twice."** He flashed a fanged grin that looked positively demonic with his hooded eyes. **"Kind of funny, isn't it? You killed your human half, and now I'm going to kill you. **_**He's**_** not going to save your sorry ass this time," **Danny chuckled and raised a gloved fist to eye range.

Dan, a touch of fear on his face, took a step away from the devilish hybrid. _'_Well, this is inconvenient. I'm dealing with a psychotic version of myself who wants to rip my head off and tear me apart.…how ironic.' He growled at that thought, eyes narrowing as he hastily contemplated his options. There were only three, and he really hated all of them. 'Be killed, fight back and possibly be killed, or take his…"other self's" suggestion.' Dan would have groaned, if he wasn't trying to remain firm and avoid the advancing halfa.

His options were limited, and he was very likely to die if he stayed any longer. Danny looked murderous, his hands soaked in ectoplasm that was entirely too reminiscent of blood for Dan's taste.

"Oh, damn it all."

And no, he was not at all tempted to scream a dessert dish.

Dan quickly turned invisible and barely missed a slash to the head. Thinking fast, he threw a ball of ectoplasm at the ceiling, exploding the rafters and several stone blocks. As the rubble fell down on his counterpart, Dan he raised a small portal and dove through the glowing surface just as Danny was smashed to the floor, hearing the halfa roar in anger as he disappeared.

"**FUCKING BASTARD!" **

Danny waited until it was clear before sitting up, dust floating around him and a gaping hole towering over his head. **"Uhhh...damn," **he climbed to his feet at a snail pace, feeling pain jabbing at his midsection and legs. Pushing up his shirt, Danny groaned when he saw the wound on his chest was seeping blood, as were the tiny cuts burning on his thighs and arms. Through hazy vision he glanced around, letting out a snort at the expected disappearance of Dan. **"Coward!"** Danny brushed a hand over his cheek, wincing at the sensation of blood trickling over his fingers. **"Well, guess I'll just be killing four birds with one stone," **he scowled at the green liquid coating his skin, but when a certain goth girl came to mind, Danny felt a sadistic smile unfurl. **"Three birds." **

Even though it ripped at his wounds, Danny walked over to the window and glanced out, wiping at the blood staining his forehead and rubbing it on the stone wall. **"I've got to make sure he dies painfully," **he growled, applying pressure to the slash on his pelvis. Leaning on one shoulder against the wall, ignoring the slick wetness oozing down his arm, Danny reached down and brushed a bloodstained finger through one of the many smears of green marring the floor, red eyes shifting into fiery slits of garnet stone as he watched Dan's blood trickle down his skin. **"**_**Very **_**painfully**_**." **_

Flicking his gaze over to the viewing screens, Danny watched the blank screens before frowning as one suddenly came to life, bearing a setting that he quickly recognized as taking place in his kitchen. Smirking, he crossed his arms and widely grinned when he saw the three teenagers seated around the kitchen table, all sporting various wounds covered with white cotton. They remained that way for several minutes, and his brow furrowed a number of times while he listened to the conversation they were having. **'****This is highly informative…I believe I now have an advantage…'**

He rolled his eyes when he heard a baritone voice speak from the shadows of the hallway, red eyes appearing out of the darkness. **'Looks like he took my human half's advice after all.' **Danny carefully observed the scene for a few more minutes, his eyes narrowing into livid slits and mouth curling all the while.

"**Maybe him getting away wasn't such a bad thing after all. I could definitely use him," **he murmured, chuckling as the screen blanked out after twenty minutes or so. **"Well, let's see. I could do one of two things: fly on ahead and beat them to the punch, or make a scene and rub it in their arrogant faces…." **he pondered for a few moments, the decision already made in his mind. **"Making a scene it is!"**

Danny wildly cackled with inhuman laughter and flew out the window, a plan already shaping in his head. It was cunning, convoluted, and deliciously evil.

'**Perfect….'**

Red eyes watched him fly away with cool scrutiny, the orbs peering out from under a veil of darkness.

"So...it's begun."

_**------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

(back to the present)

"Then we need to try and think of a way to convince Plasmius to help us make the Ecto-Reverso as soon as possible."

"Yeah, but how're we gonna do that?"

"Well, perhaps _I_ could be of some assistance."

Sam let out a low cry when the cool voice washed over them and quickly turned around in her chair to stare at the shadowed doorway. It was all too familiar, that deep baritone, and the cool edge biting at the words was something she could never forget. The other two followed her gaze; they'd recognized it too.

Scarlet eyes appeared out of nowhere, slit into thin rays of red as they stared out at her, glowing slightly in the dim blackness.

"Danny," she whispered.

"Close," the voice muttered, and the three teens nearly jumped out of their skins when Dan stepped into the kitchen, his suit nearly blinding under the fluorescent lights. They all jumped up and pulled out guns and other weapons with glowing buttons, and Dan briefly wondered where they had pulled them from. But, he didn't dwell on it. "You can relax. I'm not here to kill you. Not this time anyways." He held up his hands as a sign of peace, but all three still looked suspicious, unsurprisingly.

"And why should we trust you? Didn't you try to kill us," Jazz pointed a gun at his face, but Dan merely scoffed and folded his arms over his chest.

"Yes. However, I bring news of the little brat."

Sam's violet eyes widened in shock. "Little brat…? You saw Danny?!" The eager looked faded and suspicion returned. "Wait, how'd you even get out of the thermos? I thought you were under Clockwork's eternal watch or something!"

Dan glared at her a brief moment, sweeping his gaze down over her and smirking before he nodded, the smirk wiped off his face and replaced with a dark scowl. "Yes. I saw Danny. It was because of his little temper tantrum that--"

"Temper tantrum?" Tucker interrupted him, and a nasty glare was shot his way.

"Yes. His powers caused the thermos containing me to explode. I heard him yelling and then I felt the power surging off him. It was unlike anything I've ever felt before." Dan made sure to disguise the admiration from his voice. "One minute I'm locked in that damnable thermos, the next I know I'm floating outside my prison. And as for Clockwork, he wasn't even around. The meddling fool probably decided to go find another time line to screw around with," Dan spat the ghost's name. He was still miffed that the time master had had the gall to mess with his affairs, effectively ruining his future.

The three glanced at each other before slowly lowering their weapons. Dan mentally grinned before continuing. "However, I didn't just see your precious Danny. I fought him. Your beloved has become a formidable opponent, his fighting skill border lining downright viciousness."

"Danny? I know he's evil, but," Jazz cut off, seeing the piercing garnet stare switch over to her.

"You'd be shocked at how conniving a person can be when all of the goodness has been stripped out of them. And, judging by the bandages, I'd say that you're already familiar with this." He chuckled at their hurt expressions, especially Jazz's. "The only reason I was able to escape was because your precious Danny had a mental row with his "other" personality and let me go. At least, that was before he changed back and tried to kill me."

Tucker, Sam, and Jazz all stared at him quietly, until the techno geek let out a burst of laughter.

"Wait, YOU ran away," he snickered, but as the ghost turned his bloodred eyes on the teen, Tucker quickly shut his mouth. Dan grit his teeth, the fangs luminescent and shining like pearls, intently resisting the urge to pick the black boy up and hurl him through a window.

"Yes, as you so bluntly put it, I ran away." He snapped. "If I want to destroy that useless brat anytime soon, then my only hope was to join you fools and help return Danny to good." Seeing their skeptical expressions, Dan let out a frustrated cry and threw down his hands. "Believe me, this is the last place I want to be," he growled lowly, scowling at the three. "I would love to kill all of you in a particularly painful fashion, but I can't. I may be psychotic, but I'm not suicidal or foolish enough to bring down Danny's wrath upon me by killing his beloved."

Jazz and Sam glanced at each other, a tad freaked by his vivid response, and curious about the beloved part, but both girls simply shrugged and stared at the red eyed ghost.

"Well, even if it is for the wrong reasons...welcome to the team," Jazz said. Dan glared at her, but with a long sigh grabbed the only remaining chair and sat down at the table, the disgust ripping at his pride and effectively tearing it to shreds.

"Superb. Now, I have some demands before I even consider helping you."

Hey, if he had to be stuck with three of his least favorite people on the planet, he could at least make their lives more difficult!

"What?!" All three stared at him in a mixture of shock and outrage, but he calmly held up his hand, lifting the index finger, his twisted conscience cackling loudly as he saw the rage on their faces.

"Numero uno. I want to know everything that's happened since I was locked away in the thermos. I heard your entire conversation about the Ecto-Reverso and how Jazz helped create it, and about your plan to go to the cheesehead for help, but I want to know everything else. Specifically, it'd be beneficial for me to know all of Danny's newest powers, so I can try to device tactics based around them." He didn't give them time to respond, instead moving right along and lifting another gloved finger. "From now on, I'm in charge."

"What?! Why you? If anything, Jazz should be in charge! She's the oldest and the one who actually knows what's going on," Sam yelled, but Dan acted unaffected.

"That's where you're wrong, Sammy."

"Don't call me that!"

Smirking at her reaction, which, Sam realized too late, was what he had been wanting, Dan pointed to himself with a long finger. "Technically, _I'm_ the oldest here, being twenty four. And, since I am also theoretically half of Jazz's brother, it makes perfect sense that I would lead you three."

"You _are not _my brother," the redhead snapped, and Dan grinned at her.

"Not from this timeline, no. But, either way you look at it, I am the oldest and wisest of this merry little quartet. I also have the most experience when it comes to Danny, seeing as how our past was intertwined for a time. I know how his mind works, and I know _him_ better than any of you." He paused, but no one denied it. "No arguments? Good. Now, on to my third demand." His expression turned serious, cold. "None of you are to get in my way."

Jazz and Sam both frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"Isn't it obvious? If it comes down to it, I don't want you three to stop me if I have to resort to force in order to make Danny cooperate. If he tries to kill me, which I'm personally counting on, then I will retaliate. I will hurt him, and I don't want any of you to try to stop me…not that you really could."

"….you want us to agree to you possibly hurting our best friend?"

Dan nodded, a stern mask hardening his blue features. "Don't be naïve. Danny will gladly kill any of us in order to get what he wants, excluding one, and you three need to accept that. That boy you just saw? He's not the Danny you know. If you want a faint idea of what he's like, then take my nature and amplify it. He's cruel, ruthless, arrogant and cunning, a deadly combination that makes him even more lethal than myself, even though I'm loathe to admit it." He gave them a minute to absorb his words. "I will use force, no matter what you say, but I'd rather none of you tried to get in my way. I wouldn't be able to promise your safety then. I am known to have a rather short temper."

Tucker and Sam looked angry, but Jazz…she had a quiet look on her face, and it shocked everyone when she gave him a nod. "Fine."

"Fine?! Jazz, what're you,"

"He's right." Turning her head, she glanced at Tucker and Sam with sorrowful eyes. "Danny's changed. He isn't the person we know anymore. If anything, he probably knows Danny better than anyone at this point," she gestured to Dan, and he gave them a terrifying grin. Jazz glared at the ghost, but continued. "Exactly my point. Danny never really told us what happened in the future, but we know for sure that this is evil Danny sitting with us, from that timeline."

Dan frowned at that. He hated being addressed as Danny; it reminded him too much of the weakness that he had come from. But, corrections and proper introductions could be made later. Right about now seemed as good a time as any to jump in.

"She's somewhat right. I am the evil older version of your precious Danny," he shuddered as the name left his mouth. It felt weird, calling this now alternate self that when he could painfully remember being addressed that way so many years ago. "However, I'm not just him. What he never told you was that, in that alternate timeline, his ghost half fused with the cheesehead's and, walla!" Dan waved a dramatic hand. "I was created." Seeing their slightly disgusted and shocked faces, he chuckled. "Believe me, it was an accident, but I have no complaints. I was created from Vlad's idiocy, and Danny's weakness' guilt, but I do mostly retain his ghost half. I can relate to him much better than any of you can now, which means I have a better idea of what tactics or underhand moves he might use."

Sam stared at him, her eyes half lidded as her scrutinizing gaze passed over him. Dan shot her an annoyed glare and she stopped. He did not feel like getting shrinked.

Tucker looked astounded, worried, but Jazz…she was as calm as ever, radiating a soothing air as she looked at the other members of the team, a faint smile on her pink lips.

"Guys?" They blinked, focusing on her with surprising attention. "We know he's a jerk, and that he's tried to kill us all in the past, but I think we should agree to his demands. They aren't uncalled for. It does make sense that he would lead us."

"But he--"

"Is a freaky fusion of Plasmius and Danny. Yes, I know." She sighed, glancing wistfully at the doorway where she'd last glimpsed the teenage specter who's gaze was both terrifying and awe inspiring. "But, doesn't that just make him more qualified? Plasmius is Danny's arch nemesis, excluding him," she jerked her thumb towards Dan, seeing his satisfied smile. "He's evil in this time, so I doubt it was too different then. Who better than to help us defeat Danny than his own two arch enemies?"

Sam and Tucker were quiet, their eyes flickering between Jazz and Dan, who kept giving them arrogant smiles every time they looked at him.

Finally, Sam spoke.

"I just have one question, and, if you answer it, I'll agree to your demands too." She pointedly looked at Dan, who's face was slowly falling into a dirty scowl. "Are you sorry?"

"Sorry?" Dan furrowed his brow, slightly confused. But, his face remained locked into the scowling expression, a hard glint in his red irises. "I have nothing to be sorry for. I doubt the capacity to feel sorrow even exists in me anymore!"

She frowned at him, but gave a short nod before turning to Tucker. "Fine. Tucker?"

The African American looked stunned, but stupidly shrugged and glanced at the flame haired ghost sitting across from him. "If you guys think it's alright, then I can't argue."

"Well, now that that's over and done with." Dan grinned a triumphant smile. Casually leaning back in his chair, he smirked at the three teenagers. "If you're really looking to make the cheesehead cooperate, then I think I might be able to help you," his red eyes shone with a mischievous glint. "Plasmius has--" a red stream of mist snorted out of Dan's nose, and he hurriedly glanced around the kitchen, dark eyes shifting into cool slits. "A ghost was here…" he muttered, but couldn't see anything. "I know someone's here," Dan jumped up from the table and started out of the kitchen, a growl rumbling in his throat when he heard a faint peal of laughter.

"**Maybe your living isn't such a bad thing after all, if your amazing stupidity benefits me in so many ways…." **a velvety voice whispered beside his ear, and he whirled around and snarled as he stared into red eyes so like his own, but darker, colder. **"I really would rather kill you though." **A pale face leered at him before a glowing fist was slammed into his face, knocking him back against the wall and partially through it. As he heard the footsteps coming from the kitchen, Dan pushed himself up, feeling the broken brick and drywall dust cling to his back and neck.

"Your death wouldn't be such a bad thing either, but we don't always get what we want," he snapped, and Danny chuckled.

"Danny!" Sam, Tucker and Jazz stood gaping in the doorway, staring up at the red eyed teenager hovering a few feet away with wide eyes. The boy glanced over at them, his gaze luxuriously lingering on Sam before he smirked and gave them a cheerful salute.

"**I wish I could stay and chat some more, but I have an appointment with an old enemy that I can't afford to miss," **he flicked his hand and threw the ectoplasm that instantly covered his skin towards the older ghost. **"Call that payback for earlier." **Danny turned intangible as Dan was thrown back into the wall, smashing even more of the brick and drywall to bits, his laughter ringing throughout the house as he flew through the ceiling.

Sam felt tears pricking in her eyes as he disappeared, but she choked back a sob and turned to the massive ghost who was glaring at the spot Danny had been floating in, his mouth set into a dirty scowl. Pushing himself, once again, out of the massive hole he'd made, Dan huffed angrily and dusted off his costume.

"That little brat is going to wish he was never born."

**One thing: you're probably wondering how Danny managed to get back to the human world with the portal busted and the only other one being at Vlad's. Well, you'll find that out in the next chapter. **

**End of Chapter 3**


	4. Chapter 4

Sam, Tucker and Jazz were roughly pushed aside as Dan lumbered back into the kitchen, angrily swiping at the dust and brick shards littering his jumpsuit.

"Your little hybrid is becoming more and more of a nuisance," Dan spat, throwing a cabinet door open and rifling through the contents. The three watched him carry a little white box back to the table with curious expressions, but when Dan opened the container and took out a roll of white bandages, they understood. He was littered with small cuts and slashes, some fresh from his meeting with the wall. It was amazing, however, that he remembered exactly where everything was.

Tucker was the first one to ask what they were all thinking. "So, what do you think Danny wanted? Why was he spying on us?"

"I'm not sure. He wasn't there long enough to hear too much; I would've sensed him. He must have just---aghh!" Dan slapped a hand against his forehead, growling very offensive curse words under his breath. "He knows," he said, disgust written all over his face.

"What do you mean, he knows? You just said--" Sam was cut off as Dan undid the zipper at the front of his jumpsuit and tugged it off, leaving him bare from the waist up. Everyone, even Jazz, had to stare at the impressive six pack, but there gaze soon shifted to the bloody wound marring his skin. He started winding the bandages around his stomach, his face livid.

"Think! He must have seen what was going to happen in Clockwork's lair on the damn viewing screens! He knew what you guys had planned before you did!" The three's eyes widened in horror, but understanding was hidden beneath the shocked expressions. "The only reason he even came back was to rub it in," Dan rolled his eyes and sneered, pinning the end of the soft cloth and slipping his arms back into the sleeves of his spandex costume and zipping it up.

Sam stared at the older version of her "friend", but Tucker was, yet again, the first to ask. "What makes you think that?"

Dan, surprisingly, started to laugh, and he calmly gestured to himself. "We may have totally different futures now, but I am a part of him. If I was in his position, and with his power, I would have done the same thing. In fact, now that I think on it, I have done that. Countless times, actually."

Scowling at that, Sam ran a hand through her short black hair and sighed irritably. "Well, this is great. If he's right, then Danny knows of our plan to go to Plasmius. Jazz said that he was the one who stole the notes on Ecto-Reverso, which means he also knows that another dose of Ecto-Reverso won't affect him. And, to top it all off, he's probably going to get there first."

Jazz and Tucker began to shake their heads no, probably about to say something positive, but with a curt nod from Dan they stopped.

"There's no doubt about it. He _is _going to get there before us. Even though he's wounded, Danny has the advantage of speed on his side. Besides," he frowned, "he's got a head start, considering he's known about your scheme to get Plasmius to help you before you even thought it up. He probably already has a plan set into motion." Dan sank down into one of the chairs, his cape draping the wood like a funeral shroud. "The only real thing we have going for us is the fact that Danny's most likely going to try and trick the cheesehead into helping him with whatever scheme he's concocted, which is going to be exceedingly difficult for him."

"Why?" Tucker nearly cringed at the are-you-stupid looks that Dan, Sam, and Jazz sent his way, blue-green eyes widening in confusion. "What?"

"You know, I'd almost forgotten how stupid you are," Dan remarked. "Well, since you are clearly too ignorant to figure it out on your own. Does Danny's recent makeover ring any bells?"

"….oh…"Enlightenment entered Tucker's pale eyes, a sheepish smile spreading over his blushing face.

Dan longed to kill the younger boy right then and there. "Yeah, oh. His looks are going to cause him some problems. I doubt things have changed so much since I was in the thermos to the point where having red eyes, fangs, and a wardrobe that practically screams evil is regarded as a simple fashion statement. The cheesehead will suspect something the second he lays eyes on him."

A wide mouthed grin appeared on his face.

"Depending on how long it takes us to think up a strategy, we should be in time to stop him from completely destroying poor little Daniel." With a self satisfied smirk, Dan leaned back in the chair and propped his booted feet up on the table.

Sam stared at him with a murderous expression on her face, an angry gleam entering her periwinkle eyes.

"I thought you wanted Danny dead? Why do you care if Plasmius kills him or not," Tucker scratched his head, and Dan smiled that wicked leer that both he and Danny now seemed to share.

"I do want your precious halfa dead. However, _I_ want to be the one who kills him, so there's no way I'm going to let that brat get himself killed before I get to him. I had a wonderful experience last time ripping him apart limb from limb, and I would love to feel that pleasure again." His voice slipped, letting out a husky purr, but his smirk fell away as Sam lunged towards him, her hands moving for his collared throat.

Dan, barely moving fast enough, shot forward in his seat and managed to grab her frail wrists in one of his hands, the other erupting in green ectoplasm.

"Don't you talk about Danny like that!" Sam screamed, tugging and thrashing against his grip. "I don't care who the hell you think you are, but you're not him and you have no right to say things like that! If we didn't need you, I'd gladly kill you myself!"

Dan, brows raised at the goth's less than successful antics and barbed words, stood up from the chair so that he towered over her, her wrists captured in his gloved hands.

"I'll talk about your beloved boyfriend however I please, and you will do well to remember that I am the more powerful one here. Without my help, you three have no chance of saving Danny," he stated coldly. "You seem to be under the misunderstanding that I am the same Danny you could frighten with one of your temper tantrums or scary looks."

"Danny would never--!"

"I don't give a damn what that insufferable twit would or would not do. Honestly, you're being very hypocritical, Sammy. One minute you say I'm not Danny, and then you go and try to treat me like you would him. Sorry, but it doesn't work that way." Dan roughly tightened his grip on the pale flesh, hearing her slight whimper of pain that brought around a deep sense of satisfaction, though not as much as it would have if it had been Danny's. "I am not the Danny you seem to love so much."

"I--I don't love him!" Her cheeks blushed a dark red, but Dan sneered at the false declaration.

"I'm not blind. I know you love him. You think you hide it so well, but the fact is that the only reason people never truly realized it is because they're too idiotic. And he loves you too, even if he never realized it himself until now, and though you were too blind to see it for yourself."

Sam's mouth dropped into an O of surprise, but she quickly covered it up with a stubborn look. "This isn't the point! Whether I love him or not, which I don't, I won't have you threatening to kill my best friend in my presence! Or in theirs," she nodded towards Jazz and Tucker, who, until then, had been watching the display with faint curiosity and fear. At the mention of them, both teens glared angrily at Dan, who only snorted and, giving her wrists a final squeeze, dropped Sam to the floor. She immediately held the bruised limbs to her chest, the two glaring daggers at each other.

Jazz and Tucker glanced at them, the redhead's hand lightly moving to rest on Sam's quivering shoulder.

"Listen, now that you two are over your spat, we need to leave now if we even want to have a hope of saving Danny." Jazz said. "We can discuss the plan of action and fill…umm," she frowned, glancing over at. "What are we supposed to call you, exactly?"

His brows lifted, but he silently regarded them for a few moments before letting a dark look spread over his face, twisting his lips up into a cheeky smile.

"Well, the Valerie of my timeline called me many things, but I'm sure you _children _don't even use such horrifying language." Dan stressed the word children, and each teen grimaced in disgust. "However, since I have no interest in being referred to by my old alias, I suppose you could call me Dan."

"Dan?" Jazz frowned, but scarlet eyes gleamed with a wicked mirth.

"Dan. If you want to get technical, then you could also call me Dan Plasmius, seeing as how it still fits my emblem."

"…..okay….Dan it is." Shaking off the utter weirdness and unbelievably awkward note to the current situation, Jazz headed towards the doorway and looked back at them, seeing their gazes following her. "Well, we should probably be going. After all, we have a friend to save." She strolled out, with Tucker following quickly behind her. Dan and Sam were left alone, each still actively shooting firey stares at the other.

"Come on."

Sam nearly jumped when he spoke, her panic momentarily flaring as a black gloved hand shot out and grasped her upper arm. She glanced up to see Dan towering over her, his lips set into a firm line of deliberate impassiveness.

"We need to catch up with Jazz and Tucker." Dan tugged the teen out of the brightly lit room, fluidly maneuvering them to the stairwell. Only when he and Sam had entered the concrete room did they stop, and for good reason. It was splattered with blood; Danny's parent's, Jazz's, and even some of Sam and Tucker's. But that wasn't what drew their attention.

The portal was completely destroyed. The metal doors were twisted and melted in spots, visible dents studded all over the colored metal. Bits and pieces of the doors were scattered around on the floor, along with battered strips of the molten frame.

"I never thought about how Danny managed to return to this realm, but I guess this was how. He beat his way through. How did we not hear him doing this?" Jazz murmured, running a finger over a strip of bunched metal and hissing, recoiling away. "It's still hot."

"Maybe now you'll understand." Dan stepped up to the warped portal and warily cast an inquiring gaze over the blackened indentions. Feeling the questioning stares from the three, he growled irritably and slammed a fist into the unhinged door. His fist cut through it like a knife through butter. "See what I did? That's only a half of my power. And, as sore as I am to admit it, he owns that same power, possibly more. He destroyed the portal with little effort on his behalf, while wounded and suffering from blood loss. Imagine what he could do with such untold power when fully capable, which, if Jazz was correct, will be in a few days at most," he snarled.

Lost for words, the three could only stare wide eyed at the destruction Danny had caused with his powers, the mangled door that could easily have been one of them.

Finally, his patience seemed to wear thin. "Enough of this! We're wasting time! Are we going to leave anytime soon, or are you planning on staring at the damn door all day and forget that a murderous ghost is on the loose," he finally snapped.

Sam, a scowl still plastered on her face, jerked her sight away from the remains of the Fenton Portal, Jazz and Tucker slowly following suit.

"So, would anyone care to explain exactly HOW we're planning to…" Dan broke off as a secret panel suddenly slid open on the wall, revealing a silver colored vehicle standing...floating in the air.

Jazz smiled and removed her hand from the button that had activated the secret door, looking expectantly at the older man.

"Well, seems my parents weren't total losers after all." He remarked, his voice shockingly cold. Jazz shot a glare at him, but without a word stepped into the machine now recognized as the Specter Speeder, followed by Tucker and Sam. Dan spared a final glance around the basement, unable to resist a small chuckle when he glimpsed the bloodstained wall, and then he too jumped into the machine.

His head immediately smacked the roof. He was too tall for the machine to completely stand upright. "Oh, fud--fuck." Dan quickly replaced what was about to be a snack food with a curse word, if only to save face. One of his less redeeming qualities was that he had a horrible tendency to bellow snack foods in replace of curse word when he was angry, a quality taken from the Plasmius half he'd fused with.

A loud hiss cut through his thoughts, catching his attention. Craning his neck, as bent as it was already, Dan looked up and promptly hissed an inaudible "fudge buckets," under his breath. His hair was melting the roof!

"Sit down before you melt the whole thing," Sam snapped at him, leaning back against the wall. Glaring at her with a bloodthirsty lust for violence in his hungry eyes, Dan sat down on one of the built in benches with a murderous frown, hands flexing, longing for the ectoplasmic that normally would have been covering them at that point.

Jazz and Tucker, the two teens sitting behind the wheel of the Specter Speeder, glanced back to stare at them. "If you two are done playing cat and mouse, then can we please leave without having to worry about you killing each other?" Jazz frowned, not even waiting for their agreement before turning back around and starting the vehicle.

"I'mbefinengvovwundrvyIevrmisdu," Sam heard the ghost sitting across from her grumble.

"I, I'm sorry...what was that?" The goth growled. Dan slowly turned his gaze to hers, and he gave an inward smirk as he saw the teen wince. But even so, the adamant expression remained in her own purple eyes, her lips set into a line of rage that even he himself had to appreciate.

"I said I'm beginning to wonder why I ever missed you," Dan snapped. "Really, what does my weakness see in you?"

"EXCUSE ME?!"

Jazz and Tucker exchanged pained looks at the sound of human flesh meeting hard and unresisting metal erupting from the back.

"Let's just get out of here. Those two aren't gonna stop fighting anytime soon," Tucker sighed, and with a nod Jazz piloted the Specter Speeder out of its holding, the machine rising like a bullet into the cloudy gray sky.

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

At the same time, Danny himself was soaring through the stormy sky, but no longer was his expression one of satisfaction. Now, he bore a look of intense frustration, his eyes glowing like dark flames.

"**There has to be a way to change my looks," **Danny snarled, rolling over in the air so that he floated on his back. It hurt his chest, what with the wound slashed across his flesh, but the pain was dull, easy to ignore.

Raising a hand, Danny stared at the black gloves that ended at his wrist and the pale flesh above them, the other hand beginning to idly tap its fingers on his chest. **"There's no way I can trick Plasmius looking like this! The bastard's stupid, but he'll know something's up…I'm can't change back, and it'd take too long to alter my looks cosmetically." **he muttered to himself.

As if a higher power was trying to make his life even more miserable, it started to sprinkle, and then pour. Within seconds the rain had drenched the teen, and, unfortunately for him, the rain was icy cold and stung like tiny needles on his bare flesh. **"Great. Just great." **

Danny struggled to stay afloat in the air, but the weight of his soggy clothes were beginning to weigh him down. The burning pain in his torso and the stinging sensations radiating up his leg didn't help didn't help matters either. It was too much; he gave up and hurried towards the ground, landing in a clearing surrounded by dozens of trees.

He took shelter under a large weeping willow, shaking his white hair and sending beads of moisture flying through the air. **"Ughh, this isn't turning out the way I hoped," **he growled. **"I'm cold, wet, hurt, my human half can take control of me any time he wants and is driving me crazy, and now my one plan to get rid of him won't work because of my damn appearance! Damn it all to hell!" **

Danny slammed his fists into the tree trunk, wincing as the bark scraped his bare knuckles. The blood trickled down his fingers, dripping onto the bark and staining it a dull reddish-brown.

"**Nice going genius. Add another injury to your already wounded body." **Sighing, he dropped to the ground and crossed his legs, feeling the wound on his thigh twinge. **"Ok, I've gotta think of something." **Danny ran his fingers through his hair, hooded eyes glaring at the wet grass before his feet. **"There has to be a way to change my looks. Hell, just because nobody else I know can't do it doesn't mean that I," **he broke off and lowered his hand, intently gazing at the pale fingers and leather clad palm. **"Wait a second….somebody else has**__**done it! **_**He**_** did it. That day in the future, when the old man threw me into the Ghost Zone. He transformed into a younger version of me!" **Excitement raced through him as he remembered staring at what looked like his twin, save for the wicked sneer on his face. **"Jazz did say that my powers would be accumulating at a much faster rate. If he can do it, then so can I." **

Danny closed his eyes. He knew from experience that trying to master a new power could be particularly painful, and this was a power that hadn't even begun to manifest itself yet. Taking a deep breath, he laid his palms on his knees and leaned back against the tree, barely noticing the bark that instantly fell onto his shoulders. **'I've got to focus…I have to master this power! My future depends on it.' **

He took another long breath and felt his powers swirling inside him, a searing vortex of raw energy that was untapped, unnoticed by his goody two shoes self. As the power started rising to the surface, Danny felt the pain beginning to eat at him, but he pushed it back and delved deeper into the pool of energy.

An agonizing feeling shot down his torso, fresh blood trickling down his skin. His leg throbbed and started to burn, his small frame shaking and fangs digging into his lower lip. Blood beaded up and smeared his lips, but Danny ignored it, pushing himself harder. The power was so close, he felt like it was cocooning him in its flaming heat. He cracked open his eyes and gasped; ecto-fire was glowing on his hands and forearms, and red light flickered around his body in a blinding aura. His hair flew behind him, ruffled by the garnet energy, several of the black tipped strands blowing over his face and dyed red by his glowing eyes.

Suddenly, his body jerked, a blinding pain ripping down his spine. Danny let out a hoarse scream and wrapped his arms around his bleeding waist; it felt like his body was being ripped apart! Each surge of pain was matched by an equally strong surge of energy, energy that filled his body and chased through his veins. The mixture hurt, to the point where he felt tears stinging in his eyes, but it was oddly alluring. **"I--I have to control it--!" **The power was starting to overwhelm him, shooting more pain throughout his injured frame, but he inwardly reached out and grasped it, wrapping a hand around the blinding energy that flooded his veins.

It happened.

The pain abruptly vanished, leaving his body feeling oddly strengthened. He glanced down and a smirk slid onto his face, a face that was turning a deep golden tan. The wound on his chest, which had been visible beneath the tear in his shirt, was somewhat healed, and it was barely oozing blood, as was the one on his thigh.

Silver-white and black cloth appeared on his arms, legs and torso, the leather coat disappearing and red eyes fading to an electric green. Danny grinned when he felt his fangs retracting and hair lifted out of his face, and he raised a hand and grabbed a silky strand, chuckling at the plain silver color.

"**I did it…" **he murmured. Climbing to his feet, he dusted off the rotted bark that had fallen on him and snapped a hand; red ectoplasm immediately appeared in his cupped palm, but he merely tossed it aside where it dropped harmlessly to the ground. **"All right, so my energy color's still the same. I'll just have to make sure that I don't use my powers. But, that aside, I suppose I can set my plan into action now."**

"Well, it seems that you've been busy lately."

Danny's ghost sense went off, but only when the source emerged from the trees did the hybrid hold up a warning hand, the palm exploding into red ecto-fire. **"Yeah, you could say that. So, tell me. How does it feel, knowing that all your efforts were a humongous waste?" **He flashed the ghost a smile that, even without fangs, was frighteningly sinister.

"My efforts have not been wasted. Far from it."

Danny frowned at that, the fireball spreading so that it covered his whole hand.

"**What the hell's that supposed to mean?"**

Chuckling, the other figure began to slip back into the shadows. "We shall see each other again soon. In fact, it may be sooner than you think," the voice replied, and then it and its owner were gone, leaving nothing behind to even suggest they'd been there.

"**Ok, that was really random." **Danny frowned, a layer of goose bumps on his naked arms.** "I should kill that bastard as soon as possible," **he thought out loud, and with a slight shake of his head tossed the ectoplasm blast at a random tree, feeling no satisfaction at the loud **FWSHH **the impact made. **"****Now, lets see if I…" **he drifted off, raising one of his hands to eye level. His body was beginning to ache, unsurprised, but the discomfort was worth it when he saw the spandex disappear, leaving his skin bare. A black fingerless glove enveloped his hand up to the knuckles, and he let out a soft sigh when his hair fell back down into his face, the black tips brushing his neck. His clothing morphed into the garnet colored shirt and leather coat, his pants loose around his legs and cuffs tucked into tall boots. **"Yeah. This outfit totally kicks the jumpsuit's ass," **Danny languidly stretched, feeling his muscles twitch as he performed a graceful roundhouse kick and smashed his foot into the nearby tree. The wood shattered beneath the force, and a gaping hole was left in the tree's middle.

The teen smirked and flexed his hands. **"Excellent...I hope Plasmius doesn't mind me paying him a little visit," **Danny chuckled, his twisted mind gleeful with thoughts of his elaborate little scheme.

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Vlad Masters aka Vlad Plasmius relaxed in his armchair, quietly sipping from a glass of chilled champagne. A book was held in the billionaire's hand, the black letters on the cover spelling out the title **Romance For Dummies**.

A loud crash echoed throughout the empty halls of his castle all at once, disturbing the man and his once peace and quiet.

"What in the world?" He frowned. Another loud crash followed the first, and his curiosity grew too great. Vlad moved out of his armchair and set down his glass, the book forgotten as he strolled out of his study and down a vividly painted green hall towards the front door.

He had a good tirade planned for whoever or whatever was disturbing him, and Vlad was prepared to use it when he realized the crashing sounds were coming from the front door. His face setting into a dark scowl, the older halfa jerked open the door only to let out a cry of suprise as Danny was revealed.

"DANIEL?!" Vlad stared in shocked surprise at the boy, who was soaked to the bone with icy rain and had pale streaks of hair plastered to his unnaturally pale cheeks. What really stunned the billionaire, however, was that the teenager had glowing streams of blood splattered across his face and hands, hands that were barely covered by the tattered remains of his jumpsuit.

Dark blue eyes widened as the halfa fell through his doorway, a pained mewl falling from blood streaked lips. Vlad caught the stunned boy in his arms, feeling both cold rain and warm blood seep through his suit jacket. "Daniel, what happened to you?" He forced a calm note into his voice, but a flare of panic was welling up inside him for the boy he both hated yet couldn't help but care for.

"**Vla--Vlad?" **

"Yes, Daniel. It's me."

A weak smile was visible on his thin lips, and the panicking feeling grew only more frantic when the boy sighed and fully collapsed into his arms, his body slack in Vlad's grip. **"Thank god…."**

"Daniel? Daniel?!"

He didn't respond. Vlad scooped him up in his arms and hurriedly carried him into his study, depositing the small frame on a chaise. Anxiously, he scanned his eyes over the thin form, searching for any sign of a wound or injury. Sure enough, there were two visible ones; a cut on his chest, which, although looked to be healing, would require some sort of medical care, as would the wound on his right thigh, which was seeping blood. Blood was plastered on Danny's gaunt face and neck, and his jumpsuit was torn and bloodied. Vlad could see almost all of his chest, and there were several tears in the arms and legs of Danny's jumpsuit that revealed hints of pale skin.

"Daniel. Wake up. I need to talk to you. Daniel!" Vlad kneeled down besides the couch and lightly slapped the boy's face, feeling a twinge of relief when the teenager moaned. "Daniel, wake up!"

With what seemed to be a snail pace, Danny inch-by-inch opened his eyes, tears glittering in the usually bright orbs.** "Pla...Plasmius. I was--was able to make it here."**

"Yes, you were. Now, would you care to explain _why _you are here, and why you appear as if you were mauled by a bear?"

"**I--I ne...need your help," **Danny stammered, a faint blush beginning to color his cheeks. **"I..I had nowhere else to turn."**

Vlad looked surprised, and rightfully so. "And why, pray tell, would you need my help?" There was a slight suspicion to his voice that he didn't even bother concealing, but the white haired teen merely gazed up at him with a pained expression on his face, tears threatening to roll down his cheeks.

"**There was an accident at my house…"** Danny whispered, averting his eyes from the older man. Vlad's gaze softened, but even as he laid a hand on Danny's shoulder there was a flicker of doubt.

"Alright...you have my attention. Now, tell me what is so dire that you came all the way to Wisconsin to ask for my help?"

Danny nodded, but his face was home to a pained grimace . **"Mom…and Dad…they, I---oh god Vlad, they used this stuff on me. I--I tried to tell them, but--"**

"Daniel." A soft hand gently rubbed his shoulder, and Danny looked up from his lap in surprise, staring into oddly sympathetic eyes as Vlad, almost tenderly, brushed a strand of hair out of his face. "I can see that you've been through something very tragic, but I need you to calm down and tell me what happened."

"…**.o--okay. I'll try." **Taking a shaky breath, Danny sighed and gave the man a tiny smile. **"Well, I was kind of ca--captured by my parents. They wanted to test a new invention on me, and…they," **shaking his head, he gritted his teeth and stared at Vlad with hooded eyes. **"They have this liquidy stuff called Ecto---umm, Ecto-Reverso, I thi--think that's what Mom said. Jazz….she…she helped them make it---she thought she was do--doing the right thing," **Danny suddenly spat, his cheeks wet with salty tears. Vlad tenderly draped an arm over the shaking teen's shoulders and lightly hugged him, and Danny leaned in to the warm touch.

"And what does this Ecto-Reverso do?"

Danny cringed. **"It--it changes a ghost--turns them into the--the opposite of what they are."**

"You mean...turn them good."

"**Yeah." **

A sickening feeling awoke in Vlad's gut. What had Maddie been thinking, creating such a dangerous substance? And to go so far as to inject it into the infamous Danny Phantom, for Vlad knew just by looking at the teen that that was what had happened. His tear filled eyes said it all.

"Daniel….they used it on you, didn't they?" Triumph slashed through him when the teenager nodded, but it was bitter, unfulfilled. "Oh Daniel….but what happened? It obviously didn't work."

"**Oh, it worked all right," **Danny growled under his breath, and Vlad looked at him in surprise. **"Just not the way they wanted. I **_**was**_** turned evil...halfway. For some reason, the Ecto-Reverso only affected my other half and **_**it**_** was turned evil. Before I knew what was happening, I was attacking my parents and Jazz. I hurt them so bad that they had to be sent to the hospital," **he spat bitterly. **"I don't even know how I was able to re-transform. My human half…he's out of control. I didn't know where else to turn," **a pleading note suddenly entered the teen's quivering voice, and he glanced up at the billionaire with sorrowful ectoplasm green eyes. **"You're the only one who's capable of helping me."**

Vlad's eyes were wide as dinner plates, his mouth curved into a deep frown.

"So...only when you're in human form are you evil," Vlad stated, and Danny gave him a short frown. "Odd...and it was your parents that created this, this Ecto-Reverso?"

"**Yeah...guess they wanted to make sure I wouldn't hurt their precious children," **his voice turned venomous, anger evident in the normally quiet or proud tones.** "They didn't do enough research. They screwed up. That goop of their's caused my two halves to separate into different personalities." **

Confused, Vlad started to say something, but Danny held up a hand.

"**My stupid human half is starting to take control of my ghost half." **He said. **"That's why I need your help." **

"What do you want me to do," Vlad asked, and Danny closed his eyes, relaxing on the chaise.

"**I need you to make me more Ecto-Reverso. I don't want my human half taking me over anytime soon, but that scenario's looking all the more likely every minute. At times I can feel him taking over, and, honestly, it's **_**not**_** a pleasant experience." **Danny rested his head on the couch's buttery soft armrest, staring up at the fellow hybrid with his shadowed eyes. **"My parents screwed it up somehow. I have their notes on how they created it, but there's no way I can read them. You're the only person I could think of who might even understand what I'm going through," **Danny reached into the pocket of his jumpsuit and pulled out a wrinkled, bloodstained packet of papers, which he quickly handed to Vlad. The billionaire eagerly began scanning the typed text, his small eyes growing wide as he stared at the horrifying truth of what the Fentons had created.

'They did create this Ecto-Reverso to use on ghosts. It may not have worked on Daniel once, but it's reasonable to suspect that Jack Fenton somehow botched the making the of this substance and that's why Daniel's _human _half was affected, not his ghost half. My god, does Maddie even realize what's she's done?!' Vlad dropped the papers onto the chaise and gazed at the roughened teen sprawled out across the leather, bleeding and looking at him with deranged eyes. 'On her only son…but is this really such a bad thing?' He gazed into the tired light emerald eyes of his usual foe, seeing the insanity and vengeful fury virulently swirling around the rims of the cool irises. 'Perhaps I should allow the substance to run its course. Daniel would then be evil, and, perhaps, I might be able to persuade him to my side if--'

"**You don't see why you should consider helping me," **Danny spoke, his voice no more than a soft murmur. Vlad glanced at him in faint surprise, seeing the all knowing expression on Danny's pale face. **"You weren't doing a very good job of hiding your feelings," **he smiled, but it was cold, fake.Wincing, Danny pushed himself up into a sitting position, the cut on his stomach painfully flaring. **"Plasmius, did it ever occur to you that, if you don't help me, I might attempt to kill you?" **His piercing green gaze never left Vlad's as he leaned back against the soft leather, his arms weakly crossed in his lap. **"I already attacked my own family! What would make you any different?" **He smiled wearily at his arch enemy, taking careful note of the look of obvious look of fear that had awaken in Vlad's eyes.

"You...you wouldn't try to kill me…" he muttered, but there was a touch of doubt shadowing his words, and it only aroused a surge of anger in the younger hybrid.

"**Oh, wouldn't I? Plasmius, get real! All you've tried to do since we've known each other is either control me or kill me! Now, you try and explain why you think I wouldn't kill you, especially if I was to turn evil!" **Danny snapped at the older halfa, turning his face away and shutting his dull eyes. **"You better believe what I'm saying, Plasmius. I will turn evil if you don't help me, you can be sure of that. And when I do, I'd recommend going into hiding."**

Vlad's face shifted into a dark glare as he interpreted the boy's last words. "Are you threatening me, Daniel?"

"…**.I wish I wasn't." **

Danny slowly turned his head and let his eyes flutter open, hearing the silver haired man gasp. There were rims of garnet around his pupil, and his canines had slightly elongated, hardly noticeable but still enough to frighten the older man.

Danny leaned forward and took in the billionaire's worried expression, one of his own scared smiles plastered on his bloodied face. **"Yeah. I am. Listen, I don't want to kill you. My parents already paid for their stupid mistakes, including my mother." **He reached out and gently laid his palm over Vlad's fisted hand, a soft smile taking over his lips. **"Don't make the same mistake they did. They wouldn't listen to me when I tried to tell them that they were wrong, that I wasn't evil." **Pausing, Danny let out a quavering cry and squeezed the hand beneath his. **"They didn't listen to me, and they ended up hurt…hurt by my own hands. Please, Vlad…help me."**

Vlad, positively dumbstruck, gazed at the younger hybrid with what could only be an odd mixture of loathing and pity. "Well, Daniel, it seems that I have no choice. Very well. I will help you, if only for your mother's sake."

"**Really? Thank you!" **Danny pulled the man into a tight hug, ignoring the look of shock on his pale face.** "You won't regret this Plasmius!" **

Vlad drew away from him, lightly pushing the grinning halfa back. Still smiling, Danny let the thin hands guide him down onto laying on the leather couch, instant relief spreading across his leg and torso.

"Stay here and rest. I'll go and get you some antiseptic and bandages for those wound."

"**Ok--thanks."** Danny watched as the billionaire walked out of the room, a wicked smile spreading across his lips when as he watched him go. The red around Danny's pupil fanned out and completely covered the green irises, and his fangs shot down and brushed his lower lip. **"**_**Perfect**_**…."**

**End of Chapter 4**


	5. Chapter 5

"So...you missed me?"

Dan, his face frozen into an expression of irritation and loathing, glanced over at the goth with bloody eyes blazing.

"I'm sorry, I was trying to ignore you so that I don't rip your head off. What did you say?"

"Earlier, when you mentioned that you wondered why you ever missed me. What did you mean by that? Did you actually miss me," she asked, her satisfaction clearly visible. Dan let out a low growl, raising one of his gloved hands and viciously jabbing a finger in the air.

"Of course I didn't miss you! How could anyone miss such a scrawny, weak little girl like you," he snarled, moving the hand to rest on his leg. "Don't fool yourself into believing such a vulgar idea. In fact, I'd love nothing more than to rip you apart, along with your beloved friends and charming boyfriend." Chuckling at the outraged expression on Sam's face, Dan gave a little shrug and leaned back against the cool metal of the Specter Speeder. "Don't look so shocked. Did you honestly think that I still harbored feelings for any of you? Please, that's pathetic! What do you take me for? Or better yet, who?"

Sam was struggling to hold back tears, but with a grim determination she kept glaring at the older ghost. "So, why haven't you attacked us then? We're totally defenseless, all three of us," Sam gestured to the two teens up front, who were still totally oblivious of what was going on behind them. "If you wanted to, you could easily kill us right here. All it'd take is a bit of firepower and BOOM! We'd go up in flames and you could go after Danny on your own."

Dan rolled his eyes and smirked, tapping his fingers impatiently against his arm. "Isn't it obvious? I'm going to need your help if I even want a chance to defeat that arrogant little brat," Dan shuddered, glaring at her with a disgusted expression on his face. "If I want to kill Danny, then I have to be patient and wait till the time's right. Namely, when he's returned to normal."

"But why wait? Are you so afraid of him that you won't chance getting yourself killed in order to get revenge?"

The question, instead of getting an angry response like Sam expected, only made the flame haired ghost laugh. "Please. How stupid do you think I am? I know all to well how powerful Danny is, and Jazz made it very clear that he's only going to get more powerful. Besides," he smirked, scarlet eyes flashing wickedly. "Think how it would traumatize you three if I killed him in front of you!"

Sam, hands balled into fists, sat back with a huff, her eyes never leaving the ghost's face.

"You're a real bastard, you know that?"

Dan, fangs peeking out from under his lips, let out a throaty laugh that sent shivers up Sam's spine.

"Is that the best you can come up with? That was seriously pathetic. In my future, Valerie called me a lot worse than bastard," he chuckled. "Hell, even Danny had the ingenious idea to torment me with the nickname old man! As stupid and childish as it is, that's much more inventive than just plain old bastard!"

"Shut up," Sam snapped, a slight pout on her purple lips. Dan relaxed against his seat, idly crossing his arms over his chest. For several minutes the two remained in silence, staring out the front windshield and gazing at the black sky, but soon enough Sam spoke up yet again. "Why're you so determined to kill Danny?"

"Why're you so determined to save him," he retaliated.

"Because Danny's my friend! I can't let him stay like this, it's not who he is! Danny really doesn't want to be this evil monster who,"

"Oh? Doesn't he?" Dan sneered and let out a chilling laugh. "You must not have been paying attention when Jazz was explaining what Ecto-Reverso does." Her stunned expression made it clear; she had no idea what he was talking about. Perfect. "Danny's more than happy to remain this way. In his mind, all the Ecto-Reverso did was make him more powerful, more capable. What you refuse to accept is that your precious Danny is evil. That's who he is."

"Danny is not evil! He's a good person who-"

"Wrong. He _was _a good person. The other half of his mind, the side he never knew about, was evil to the core. What do you think made him steal those test answers several months ago? Everybody has an evil side to them, Sammy. Even your heroic Phantom."

Ignoring the use of her hated nickname, Sam felt her mouth opening and closing again, but no words had come out. She was stunned.

'Dan's…he's right.' The thought registered in her mind, but it was a sickening one that she really didn't want to even consider possible. "You…"

"Go ahead and say it. I'm right." Dan's prized smirk slipped onto his face. "I know it must be absolutely appalling in your tiny little gothic mind, but you and I both know that everything I just said is true. Face it. You're determined to save someone who doesn't even want to be saved."

"Then why do you even care if he's returned to normal?! Why not just leave him that way and go about your merry way," she hissed, but Dan gazed at her with his cruel smile twitching and red eyes narrowing.

"I explained that to you. I need Danny good if I want to exact my revenge. He's too ruthless for me to even consider going against him. I'm psychotic, not suicidal. If I was to fight Danny right now, there's a good chance I'd end up dead." He sneered and languidly flicked his wrist, ectoplasm spurting up from the spandex and enveloping his gloved skin. Sam eyed the swirling green energy with caution, but her barbed tongue wouldn't be kept silent.

"We won't let you kill him. And anything that wants to get to him has to go through me," she punched a pale fist into her palm, but the ghost chuckled.

"Is that a challenge? I could use a little action." He stood up and crossed his arms, the glowing energy still swirling around his fist. "Then again, it really wouldn't be a very long fight. You're too weak to even stand a chance against me."

The furious look that appeared on her face nearly rivaled that of Dan himself...but not quite.

"And without your powers?!" Sam's fighting spirit faded a bit when the flame-haired ghost moved closer and gazed down at her, his tall frame towering over hers. Dan grabbed and pulled her out of the seat, his hand tightly wrapped around her wrist as he hoisted her into the air.

"_I'm still more powerful than you_…" he murmured dangerously, his voice blowing goose bumps down her skin. Sam didn't even thrash against his grip, but instead simply stared up at the creature that her best friend (and love) could have become….and nearly was. "I will kill you if you keep provoking me, and I won't feel any qualms about it. So, for your own safety, I'd recommend keeping your stupid remarks to yourself." He released her wrist, and with a yelp Sam fell to the metal floor.

"Hey, what's going on back there?!" The two glanced up front; Tucker was glancing back at them, a worried look practically etched into his face. "Sam, you ok," he frowned at the sneering ghost who had dropped back onto the metal bench.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Sam climbed to her feet and stalked back to her seat, glaring at the opposing blue skinned man with fury shining in her purple eyes.

"Physically or psychologically?"

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Danny followed Vlad into the billionaire's personal lab, glowing green eyes sweeping the beeping and buzzing machines.

"Alright...this Ecto-Reverso, it alters a ghost's mental state and switches control from the dominant area of the brain to the suppressed area, or, in your case, the evil half."

"**Right," **Danny muttered, shifting his gaze over to the ghost portal taking up the mass of the back wall.

"And this batch must be administered to your human half, the only one that was affected," Vlad stated, taking a quick glance at the young halfa; Danny was still glancing around the lab, staring with a strange intensity at all the equipment. "Daniel?"

"**Huh? What'd you say, Plasmius?" **Danny glanced at him, a curious gleam in his light eyes.

"Daniel, you do realize that this could be very tedious? It could easily take me several hours just to learn for myself how to make this Ecto-Reverso, and then several more just to make it," Vlad explained, turning back towards the monitor and keyboard he'd formally been working on. "With your state being the way it is, I'd recommend you get some rest. You've been through the ringer, and your wounds aren't going to heal any faster if you continue to strain yourself."

"**I'm ok, Plasmius. I think I'll hang around and help you out," **Danny forced himself to give the older man a helpful smile, but Vlad laid a hand on the his shoulder and gently pushed him towards the doorway.

"Thank you for the offer, Daniel, but I believe I can handle this myself. Besides, it's after midnight. You should be asleep by now."

Danny pulled out his cell phone and glanced at the digitalized numbers, his eyes widening as he saw that Vlad was right.

**12:23**

'**If I managed to get here only a couple of hours ago, then Sam and the rest are probably right on my tail. Damn, I should've kept my eye on the time! They'll make it here in no time and disrupt my plans if I don't stop them!' **

"Daniel?"

Vlad's voice invaded his thoughts, and he blinked and tore his gaze away from the numbers, quickly flipping his phone closed and letting out a soft yawn. **"You know, I think you're right. I am feeling pretty tired," **Danny scrunched up his peridot eyes and stretched, ignoring the pain in his chest. **"I guess I'll just go crash somewhere for a bit." **

"Take one of the guest rooms upstairs." Vlad recommended, and with a nod Danny strolled out the door, running a lazy hand through his hair and yawning. He climbed up the stairs leading out of the lab, waiting until he was at the top before letting his eyes fade back to their bloody tint.

"**Stupid cheesehead," **he muttered. Danny paused when he emerged in the main hallway, and, after a glance down both ends, he thrusted out his hand. Around his palm grew a glowing red sphere of light that spread over his whole body, shifting the black and white jumpsuit into the black pants, red shirt and leather coat of his new costume. Danny grinned and felt the tip of his fangs with his tongue, cracking his knuckles in their leather casing. His white hair fell messily down into his face, the black tips brushing his neck, but he barely noticed. His smile turned positively vicious as he turned intangible and flew through the walls of the castle, chuckling as he soared into the black sky. **"Now to have some fun…" **

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"I hate you!"

"You're not exactly number one on my favorite list either, Sammy."

"I told you not to call me that!"

"As if your opinion really matters to me. I'll call you whatever I please!"

Jazz and Tucker let out sighs from the front seat, both teens rolling their eyes at the sounds of Dan and Sam arguing...again.

"Geez, don't those two ever take a break," Tucker groaned, and Jazz let out a tired sigh. "I mean, come on! They're worse than a married couple!"

"Don't let Sam hear you say that." Jazz warned, casting a worried glance at the two figures glaring at each other in the back. "Who knows what she'd do."

"Umm, I'm pretty sure I should be more concerned about the muscle packed, psychotic version of Danny back there. You know, the guy with the really short temper and massive pecks?"

"Yeah, but you know what he'll do to you."

"….rip me apart with his bare hands?"

Jazz nodded. "Exactly. You know what to expect from him. Sam, on the other hand….who knows. I usually don't agree with the philosophy fear what you don't know, but, in this case, I'd say the saying is appropriate."

Tucker paled, a look rather odd what with his dark skin. "Good point. I'd...uh, you guys?! WE'VE GOT COMPANY!"

Dan and Sam broke off their fighting long enough to hear his cry and immediately ran up to the front of the Specter Speeder. It was hard to see, what with the cloudy skies, but the three teenagers cried out when a bolt of lightening illuminated the sky, and the floating figure hanging several feel in front of the machine. Dan frowned and glowing ectoplasm appeared around his hands, wrapping them in a formless glove of bright green.

"Great. I need to blow off some steam," he smirked. Jazz, Tucker and Sam all threw him dirty looks, and Jazz all but slammed her hand down onto a red button; the glass windshield disappeared, a faint wind ruffling their hair and clothes.

The halfa hovering before them smirked and held up the glowing red fireball resting in his left hand, the light illuminating his face with blood streaks. **"Mind if I join the party? I didn't receive an invitation, but I thought I'd just **_**crash**_**," **he purred crash, and the teenagers shivered. It really made them realize that they were floating in a contraption of thin metal, a machine that Danny could easily destroy.

"Danny…" Sam whispered. His bloodred eyes turned to her, his expression turning from a smirk into an all-to-familiar smile that Sam had first seen in FentonWorks.

"**Hello Sam." **Danny grinned at her, but his gaze shifted over to Jazz, Tucker, and then landed on Dan. **"Hey old man. You know, it was pretty stupid of you to leave me in Clockwork's lair. If not for your collapsing the roof on my head, I might not have stuck around and seen what you four were up to. Or rather, what you were going to be up to."**

Jazz, Tucker, and Sam all shot scowls at him, but Dan ignored them and kept his focus entirely on Danny.

"If you had to cheat to figure out to go to Plasmius and get him to help you, then you really don't have the right calling me stupid," Dan chuckled.

Immediately the fireball Danny held exploded into massive flames that swept up his whole arm, the halfa's face taking on a murderous, demented smirk. **"Yeah, but in case you didn't notice, I'm still alive and uninjured. Well, not counting the wounds on my leg and chest." **Danny chuckled, the sadistic grin widening with every word.

"So? What's your point?"

"**Yeah, and I'm the stupid one," **he mocked, rolling his eyes. **"The point is, you mentally challenged screw up, that I managed to convince Plasmius that I'm the old Danny. Pure, sweet, and moral ridden to the core." **

Sam's eyes widened, and with shock written across her face she glanced at the others; they all wore the exact same expression, save for Dan. He was too busy glaring at his younger counterpart.

"But...how'd you manage to trick Plasmius," Jazz asked confusedly. "He's not that stupid!"

"**Hmm, now that's an excellent question Jazzy-pants." **Danny thrust out his other hand, a red light flickering in his palm. "**But you already know the answer to that. In fact, you were the one to point it out!"**

"I--I was? But I never….oh no," the redhead's brows furrowed and she let out a tiny gasp. "Your powers!"

"**Exactly. My powers." **The red glow in his palm spread up his skin, covering his body with the flickering aura. Through the soft light they could see Danny's body shifting, his white hair ruffling and falling down over his pale face.

The light slowly began to fade, but the boy hovering before the Specter Speeder wasn't the demonic figure that had been there before.

A familiar black and white jumpsuit hugged his body, silvery-white hair fixed into its normal messy hairdo. Red eyes had faded to a pale green, but the coldness in the orbs was unchanged.

Danny grinned, a sinister look even without the fangs.

"What…? How did you…that's impossible!" Dan stuttered, disbelief coloring his voice.

"**Why? Because you didn't get that power until so many years from now?" **Danny snickered, giving the man a cold smile. **"Did you forget in your old age? The future isn't set in stone." **His eyes flickered and then resumed their dark ruby shade, his clothes re-morphing into the baggy black pants, leather coat and sleeveless red shirt. Danny brushed a lock of white and black hair out of his face, the other hand still cradling the gleaming fireball in his free hand.

"Danny…" Sam gazed at the devilish figure, tears stinging in her purple eyes. As if sensing her gaze, Danny turned his head and peered out from under his mottled bangs.

"**You know Sammy, the offer to join me still stands," **he purred, a quiet, honeyed tone coloring his husky voice. **"I'd love to have you by my side…" **he extended a pale hand, almost as if pleading with the girl. Sam's face paled, and then the realization hit her...she was tempted to take his offer! Her hand was lifting unconsciously, reaching for his. She immediately snapped it tock against her chest and violently shook her head.

"No! No!"

The expression on Danny's face went from smiling to a terrifying glare, the splayed fingers twitching as his hand fell down to his side.

"**Fine…" **

Without even a seconds hesitation Danny threw the fireball at the Specter Speeder

The glass and metal exploded with a earth shattering roar. Sam barely noticed her arm being grabbed before she started plummeting towards the earth, but she screamed and started falling, the blades of metal and glass dissolving through her flesh. Jazz and Tucker screamed somewhere to her left, but she couldn't see them. They were intangible!

As soon as they were far enough away from the firey blast above them, Dan turned them tangible and Sam could see him grasping hers and Jazz's arms, Tucker barely holding on to the redhead's.

A strangled yell suddenly came from her left, and she cried out when a large blast of red hit Dan square in the chest. His hands fell away and he tumbled downwards through the air, blood glistening on the front of his jumpsuit as he managed to throw a weak shot of ectoplasm at his laughing counterpart.

"Dan!" Sam reached for the ghost, but her fingers slipped and he fell away, falling at a faster speed towards the ground. A gust of wind caught her in the chest and she tumbled towards the side, a loud scream tearing from her lips. She heard her friends screams somewhere below her, but they were muffled by the wind and by her own.

Sam was expecting cold and unyielding ground to be her demise, but strong arms came out of nowhere and slid under her arms and knees, slowly halting her falling form.

"Wha…" she squeaked, hesitantly opening her violet eyes. The ground was indeed closer by several hundred feet, but even so Sam had to suppress a whimper at the astounding height.

"**You know, I didn't have to save you…" **her savior murmured. Sam felt a wave of fear wash through her when she glanced up, the sight of Danny silhouetted against the moon and ebony sky much scarier than the previous falling sensation. **"I could have let you die." **Danny lifted his arms so that Sam was lifted up to his eye level with amazing ease, the look on his face making Sam wish he'd just let her fall. Blood trickled from a thin graze running the side of his neck, but he paid it no mind. **"I'd say you owe me one. How's a lifetime of being my slave sound as repayment?" **

"Danny, this isn't you…" Sam whispered, wincing in pain as his arms brutally tightened around her limbs, several drops of his glowing blood falling on her arms. It slightly stung where the blood hit her, but the pain was nothing compared to what she was used to.

Danny watched the blood trickle down her arm with a twisted fascination, but he glanced back up with a knowing smirk on his face.

"Please! Let us help you!"

The hybrid stared at her amusedly, then, to her shock, removed his arms. Sam started to let out a scream as she started the short fall to the ground, but cut off when she was halted in midair.

Danny had caught her right after she began to fall, and the goth blushed when she finally noticed that he was holding her bridal style, as he had done countless times in the past. For some reason, this seemed much more erotic than she remembered.

"**I don't need help…" **he chuckled, cradling her loosely in his arms. **"Who's the one being held in the arms of the most notorious ghost on the planet?" **His smile shifted, taking on a mocking tilt. **"****Nice to see you're still in one piece. I figured you and the old man would at least have thrown a few punches by now."**

"Danny…" Sam pressed an unsteady hand against his chest, her breathing going ragged under his penetrating stare. Suddenly a chilling realization hit her, and with a cry she glanced around, tears rolling down her face. "Where's Jazz and Tucker?!"

Danny suddenly scowled, and he pointed down with disgust clear in his ruby eyes. **"They're alive. Unfortunately. I saw him grab them before they nearly went splattering across the terrain."**

A sigh of relief escaped Sam's lips, but then her eyes widened in horror. "You were going to let them fall!" Danny didn't respond, but the coldness lurking in his eyes told her everything she needed to know. "How could you?" She screamed at him, kicking her legs and angrily punching the boy's chest.

"**They're of no use to me anymore, and Jazz deserves nothing less than death for her foolishness and betrayal. Besides, what does it matter? The bastard saved them, even if it was for his own selfish purposes," **Danny added, his arms iron strong around her struggling form. He didn't even seem to feel it when Sam threw another punch at his shoulder, although he did take a moment to roll his eyes and sigh exasperatedly. **"You should be happy. Jazz and Tucker are alive, along with the old man. The wound I gave him was far from fatal. He'll heal in no time."**

"Old man? You mean Dan?"

His face was perfectly schooled into a nonchalant mask, but when she glanced up Sam saw the murderous glint in his bloody eyes.

"Ok, what is your problem? I know he tried to kill you in the past, but you haven't exactly wasted any time getting revenge! What are you, jealous or something?!" Sam paused, and the halfa huffed and looked away, a dirty sneer creeping onto his lips. "Oh, come on! You can't be serious! That's so stupid! What do you have to be jealous of?"

"**What do I have to be jealous of? Are you really that clueless?! Let's try the fact that your savior Dan," **he spat the variation of his name, rage coloring his silky voice, **"is taking advantage of his being close to you, when he knows very well that you belong to me!" **Danny out of nowhere shifted, floating so that his legs were sprawled out before him as if he were sitting on a chair, and he deposited Sam into his lap, ignoring her startled yelp. Sam had no choice but to wrap her arms around his neck, for fear of falling. Worse, she could fully see the vivid color of his eyes, and the fangs that were revealed each time he opened his mouth. **"That's what'll make my killing him all the sweeter," **he drawled in his cool voice, watching the momentary jolt of shock go rushing across the pale face before him.

Shielding her fear, Sam decided to yell at her temporary companion. "You're being stupid! We hate each others guts!" She took a moment to fully ponder his statement, her eyes darkening in bridled rage. "And I don't belong to you! You don't even like me, so what does it--"

"**Oh, I don't?" **A strange, disbelieving smile began curving his mouth upwards, the all to familiar I-know-something-you-don't-know edge shadowing his red irises. **"What planet have you been living on?"**

"Huh? What're you talking about?"

Danny simply smiled and draped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. **"Maybe I should give you a demonstration to help you figure it out." **

Sam didn't have time to respond to the meaningful words. Danny's mouth descended onto hers in a kiss that made her blood race, fireworks blazing before her eyes. She sensed a dull panic welling up inside her, but she couldn't make herself stop as she tightened her arms around his neck and snaked her fingers through his hair.

A soft wetness pressed against her lower lip, gently caressing the curve. Danny gently nicked her lip with a fang and pressed his tongue between her lips, hearing her gasp and smirking at the breathy sound. **"I can be a very possessive person…" **he whispered, and he grabbed her by the neck and pulled her back, staring into her stunned face with a cruel smile. **"Especially when it comes to someone I love."**

Sam started to say something, but a burning sensation shot down her arm and her face froze into a look of horrified shock.

"Danny!? What are you doing?!"

The halfa's lips were blazing hot against her torn flesh, and Sam screamed as he buried the sharp fangs deeper into her shoulder, drawing streams of warm blood from the creamy flesh.

Sam cried out, her arm alight with raw, agonizing pain. "Danny, please, stop!"

"Is this a bad time, or would you rather me come back later after your done playing vampire?"

Danny jerked his head up, blood staining his lips and dripping off his sharp incisors. Sam sat stunned in his lap, her breath was coming in short pants, but she managed a faint smile when she saw Dan floating in the air before them, an eyebrow cocked quizzically.

"**What do you want," **Danny snapped, wrapping an arm around red streaked arms and pulling Sam closer to him.

Dan stared calmly at the two, his gaze landing on the blood stained spot on Sam's shoulder. "I see you were having a private moment," he grinned, and Sam shivered at the sight of his own glittering fangs. Danny let out a low growl, bloodred eyes glowing with unbridled anger.

"**As a matter of fact, we were...now how about getting lost?" **

"Sorry, but I can't do that." Dan shrugged, but the scheming light in his red irises was all too clear. "You see, while I could care less about what you do to her," he gestured towards the pale faced goth, "the others do. They asked me to rescue her, and, seeing as how I unfortunately still need their help, I have to take your precious Sammy back."

Danny snarled a warning, teeth bared into an animal-like smirk. **"Over my dead body." **

"Careful what you wish for," Dan chuckled, the cunning smile creeping onto his mouth. Danny barely had time to dodge before a green surge of ectoplasm went hurtling past them, exactly hitting the spot he'd been floating in. He cradled her bridal style and dove downwards, feeling another blast ruffle his hair and wincing as a bolt managed to slice into his arm.

"Danny!"

Sparing a quick look at the girl in his arms, Danny hurled her over his shoulder and shot a red blast at the smirking man, which, luckily, hit dead on and sent him tumbling backwards. **"He's more trouble than I anticipated," **he muttered, and a fist promptly slammed into his back.

"Don't talk like that! He's just doing what Jazz and Tucker asked!"

Danny rolled his eyes and lightly slapped the girl's thigh, smirking at her indignant gasp and her repeated attempts to injure his spine. **"Sam, that doesn't hurt," **he glanced over his shoulder and saw her staring at him, a twinge of worry in her wide eyes.

"Danny, I don't know what happened just now, but you need to let me go. Do you understand?"

"**Sam, I'm evil, not retarded. I know perfectly well what you're saying. I'm just choosing to ignore it." **

She blushed, but the determination written on her face only made the expression more endearing. "Listen. I know you're evil and want to kill everybody, but you've got to let me go. I don't want to see you get hurt because of me."

"**Get hurt because of you?"**

"You can't fight Dan if you're trying to keep me from splattering against the ground," she explained, and the halfa looked about ready to smack himself across the face. At least, that was until a thin beam of ectoplasm whipped across his cheek and cut a thin line into the pale skin, oozing green blood welling up and trickling down his face. Growling and cursing a vulgar series of phrases that even had Sam startled, Danny twirled around and glared at the ghost hovering behind them.

"Ready to give her up?"

Practically spitting fire, Danny glanced between him and Sam, finally breathing an irritated sigh. **"Oh, damn it all…" **he dodged another ectoplasm blast, an exasperated frown on his face. **"Hold on tight." **

"Hold on…?" Sam didn't finish her sentence, instead going for a shriek when Danny started flying towards the ground, the wind whipping past her with sadistic cruelty. She saw a wave of ectoplasm go flying out behind them and hit Dan in the chest, causing him to double over in pain.

A tirade just begging to be released, she turned her head and promptly screamed; they were hurtling towards earth at a neck braking speed! Just when she thought they were going to hit the ground, Danny pulled himself up; the two now floating less than three feet off the earth. "Wha…? Oh wow…" she gasped, eyes wide with terror and exhilaration. Sam nearly collapsed when Danny set her on her feet, but instead of falling she found herself being turned and pressed up against his chest. "Danny, what're you,"

"**Go to Jazz and Tucker." **Sam was confused, and, his frustration reaching its peak, Danny gazed down at her with a furious scowl. **"Just like you said. If I'd kept fighting up there, then you might've been hurt. You're no use to me dead, and besides," **he broke off, brushing a pale finger over her wounded shoulder, **"I've already marked you as mine." **His face broke into a malicious smile, and he hastily jammed his lips on hers. **"I'll be seeing you Sam...and next time, don't plan on anyone coming to your rescue."**

Sam didn't even notice she was holding her breath until Danny suddenly disappeared, and on shaky legs she stumbled to the ground.

"Sam!" The goth glanced up when she heard her friends calling her, but couldn't muster the strength to get up, or even move. Wiping at the blood on her shoulder, she held up her hand and frowned; there was a slick mixture of red and green staining her fingers, and her fingertips were tingling, as if numb.

"Well, that was interesting." Sam didn't move when Dan materialized in front of her, his bloodred eyes narrowed and arms jauntily poised by his hips. "He left?"

"Yeah...he didn't want me to get hurt," she murmured, the shock in her voice evident. Dan stared down at her unblinking, and as Jazz and Tucker appeared from the trees he glanced up into the sky, a smirk on his blue face.

"I knew he had a thing for you."

**End of Chapter 5**


	6. Chapter 6

Sam, Dan, Tucker, and Jazz all sat on the ground where Sam had been found, everyone's eyes trailed on the bleeding girl.

"So, let's get this straight. Danny has a thing for you, and he's pretty much saying that you're his and that no one else can have you." Jazz frowned, disbelief written across her face. Sam nodded, a hand still pressed to the bloody wounds on her shoulder.

Dan turned his head and grinned at her. "Like I said. He has a thing for you."

"Shut up! You nearly killed me back there, and all you can do is laugh and ignore the fact that Danny's probably back at Vlad's now," she snapped.

With a simple shrug Dan leaned back against a tree, tilting his head forward so that his hair avoided the bark. "Please, use your brain for once. I wasn't going to let you die. We still need you in our merry little group, and besides," he flashed her that smile that made Sam want to strangle him, "if push comes to shove, you could be bait."

Three pairs of angry eyes turned on the ghost, and Dan chuckled when Sam let out a ferocious cry and wildly gestured with her free hand. "How is it that you were _Danny's_ future self? Damn it all, you are such a pompous ass!"

"Why thank you. At least that was more original than bastard," Dan couldn't resist a short laugh, his bloody eyes crinkled with humor. He glanced the goth up and down, his gaze trailing over her wounded shoulder up to her face, which was at the moment the cover image for anger. "And in case you didn't catch on when you and Danny were having your private moment, he's just as much of a pompous ass as I am. Maybe more, considering _he_ is a teenager."

Jazz, somehow still cool and collected, placed a hand on Sam's unhurt arm and held her back, stopping her from lunging forward and futilely attacking the flame haired ghost. "Stop it you two. We need to focus on finding a way to get to Vlad's."

"Yeah, but Danny's got that cool new skill! He's already convinced Plasmius that he's the old Danny, which means that here soon he'll be injecting his human half with the Ecto-Reverso." Tucker visibly slumped, a tired look on his face. "Maybe we should just give up. As long as he doesn't kill anyone, does it really matter if Danny,"

"What? If he's evil?" Dan snickered and leaned up, scarlet eyes blazing intensely as he stared at the teenager. "You really want an evil Danny walking around? Fine, but you better be prepared to die." He lightly slapped the ground and pushed himself up. "However, I really don't fancy dying, so, instead of sitting around and feeling sorry for ourselves, let's do something about it."

The three teens stared with confusion, and a smirk twitched on his lips.

"And just how do you expect us to do that? We don't exactly have transportation! I don't know about you, but I don't think **we** can walk all the way there," Sam snapped at him.

"Who said anything about walking?" Dan brought a hand up, a glowing portal emerging around his palm. "We've got a ride." He touched a tiny button on the cuff of his glove and it immediately shined a blinding white. While the group watched, a dark shape began to take form in the glowing shadows of the ghost zone, the...thing moving towards them at lightening speed.

"What the heck is that?"

All three cried out and jumped when a massive black motorcycle burst out through the mini portal, its gleaming body surrounded with an ethereal white glow, the same as Dan and Danny's. On the side of the gas tank was the DP symbol, and it glowed an electric green against the black background.

Tucker was practically drooling over the machine, eyes wide under black framed glasses. "Wow, that thing is sweet!"

Dan, ran an appreciative hand over the shining metal, an arrogant smile on his face. "You could say I...borrowed it from Johnny 13."

Both Sam and Jazz frowned at that.

"Stealing's more like it."

Dan flashed a scowl at the goth, but her eyes were trained on the massive motorcycle. The handles were a serpentine twist of gleaming silver metal, the same color as the painted flames creeping up the gas tank. The seat was made of cushy black leather, and Sam had to admit it looked as soft as butter, even if it was made out of a poor animal.

"It looks...bigger." Dan glanced over at Jazz, her brows knitted together in a curious expression. "The last time I saw this bike, it looked a lot smaller, but now it's"

"Of course it's bigger. Do you honestly think I could have rode on it the way it was, with my size?" Dan let out a snort of laughter. "I had it modified soon after I got it. Besides the size, the whole look needed a makeover. So, I made it more suitable to this form," he gestured to his clothes and hair, lightly running his tongue over one of his pearly fangs.

"Who fixed it up," asked Tucker, kneeling down beside the machine and inspecting the tank with its DP insignia.

"I actually had to overshadow a guy in California to make him do most of the renovations, since I knew practically nothing about bikes when I got it. I stole the technology I needed to make the bike run off ecto-power and fly at speeds matching my own from Technus, and then I had him explain how to install them so I could do those parts myself. Of course, Technus didn't like having to help me, but I taught him a lesson he'd never forget," Dan snickered, running a hand across the leather seat.

Sam joined Tucker and gently touched the green emblem, her expression blank as she glanced up at Dan. "Danny never mentioned you using a bike."

"He didn't know about it." Red eyes swept over the gleaming machine with hidden enthusiasm. "I can't use it too much because the bike runs off my power. If I'm right, I should be able to get us the rest of the way to Wisconsin and still have enough power to beat my younger self senseless." The three teens resisted a long groan, though Dan did catch Sam rolling her eyes. He shot her a cold glare before continuing. "But we need to leave now if we want the faintest hope of catching Danny."

Sam glanced at the motorcycle and then at the four of them, a frown unfurling on her purple lips. "There's no way all four of us can fit on that thing. That bike may be able to carry Dan comfortably, and two people could ride and still be ok, but four? No way," she muttered.

Jazz and Tucker stared at the machine with worried eyes, eyeing the large seat and vast girth. It was large, with plenty of space for Dan, but all of them? Jazz was the first to shake her head. "She's right. There is no way we can all fit on that…" the redheaded girl sighed. "That only leaves one option. Only two of us can go after Danny."

Dan laid a protective hand on the machine. "I'm obviously one of them. Whoever goes will need me to power the motorcycle."

"...So. Who's it gonna be?"

An air of silence settled over the three teenagers, their eyes uneasily gazing at each other. As Sam let her gaze travel over Jazz, Tucker, and then finally Dan, the goth could see the evil glint in the flame haired ghost's eyes. Danny had the same expression when he was planning something, good or evil, and she had a sneaking suspicion that Dan was no different.

He smirked at her, then turned to Jazz. "I think Sam should be the one to go with me. She's the one Danny wants and could prove to be a useful distraction."

The redhead actually seemed to be pondering his statement, and it surprised all of them when she gave him a short smile and nodded. "You know, that might be best."

Jazz didn't even flinch when Sam turned on her; she'd anticipated the girl's stubbornness.

"Sam, you're the only one who even stands a chance at getting Danny to listen to you. Think about it logically. Dan will need your help if he wants to stay alive, even if he refuses to admit it," she stated, smirking at the indignant look on Dan's face. "You WILL need her help, especially if your powers aren't going to be at their fullest."

Sam glared him while he scowled at Jazz, but finally Sam rolled her eyes and let out a long groan. "Fine," she spat through gritted teeth. "Lets get going."

Dan smirked, and in a flash of black and white he was sitting astride the massive bike, holding a hand out to her and smiling with the cunning edge hinted in his glowing eyes.

"Come on Sammy, unless you're too afraid," he chuckled, seeing her hesitant step towards the bike. Sam glared at him and smacked her hand into his, letting him help lift her onto the seat in front of him. She was practically all but spooned against him, the heat from his body warming her chilled flesh. "I'd hang on if I were you," he warned, and Sam grabbed the gleaming metal handles in front of her. "LET'S RIDE!"

She jumped at the loud roar that echoed from the machine. The bike beneath them was quickly being surrounded by a glowing green light, and Sam felt the body behind hers shaking slightly. Tiny buttons and dials all lighted up along the handle's, one glowing the same green as the bike.

Dan let out a long yell that shook the trees of the forest and eagerly pressed the button. Emerald fire spurted out from the tailpipe like flames from a dragon's mouth, and Sam screamed as the motorcycle shot forward and went flying between the trees, the clearing behind them disappearing within a second.

Watching the two disappear off into the shadowed trees, Jazz and Tucker glanced at each other with apprehensive looks. "Do you think they'll be ok? I mean, they can't go five minutes without fighting or wanting to rip each other's heads off," Tucker grimaced, and Jazz anxiously clasped her hands and frowned.

"Honestly, Tucker? I'm really not sure."

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Danny, a malicious smile still plastered on his face, flew at his top speed across the sky, eyes glowing the same color as the blood still trickling off his lips. With a swipe of his tongue the blood coated his teeth, the red brighter against the snowy white of his fangs.

"_**You just had to do it, didn't you? Man, we have even less impulse control when evil!" **_

Danny snarled, his voice reflecting the irritation he felt at hearing the unwanted voice. **"Oh great, you again. Why don't you just shut the hell up and let me enjoy myself? It's bad enough that you're trying to control me, but do you have to interrupt my private fantasies?!" **

"_**Yes, I do have to interrupt your private fantasies, seeing as how I find them a little too disturbing for my tastes. I knew you were twisted and demented, but come on. Whips? Chains?" **_

"**Oh, go to hell. You know you've always been curious about those kinds of things. And don't try to deny it. After all, we are the same person, as you soooo love to point out." **He paused, but the voice could only give a little huff of irritation and, if he could have, pout. **"Besides, you won't be singing that tune for too much longer." **

Danny sighed in relief when the voice didn't respond, but of course the hybrid wasn't going to be shown any mercy; a minute or so later, the voice resumed talking.

"_**Do you honestly think you're going to turn me evil? I know we're a C-average student, but even you should have realized that Sam and the others aren't gonna let that happen! I mean, even if they don't prevent you from getting the Ecto-Reverso, you're still gonna have to find a way to inject ME with it. Really, what were you thinking?"**_

"**Oh, I'll find a way…"**

"_**How? The minute you change back I'm just gonna take control, and then the others can find a way to," **_

"**SHUT THE HELL UP!" **Danny's human half fell silent at the sound of the yell that was a meager step away from becoming the ghostly wail. **"Believe me...I will find a way to change you…" **Danny snarled to himself, his hands glowing a dark and unnatural red. **"You can count your sorry ass on it." **

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

(and hour or so later)

Sam, very grudgingly, had to admit that riding on the motorcycle was REALLYYYY FUN. She loved the way the wind blew through her hair, and the thrill of going around 200mph was intoxicating. But, there was one thing she didn't like about the ride, besides being forced to spend time with Dan. They were flying. Literally flying. She was so high up in the air that that a fall from the Specter Speeder would have looked like a drop from a first story window.

It...was...scary.

"Do we have to be so high up," Sam yelled, but Dan just smiled that fanged grin that she was _rrreeeaaalllyyy_ beginning to loathe.

"Why? You afraid of heights Sammy?"

"No, I am not afraid! And don't call me Sammy!" With a loud gulp the goth glanced down, her eyes widening at the drop that would lay before her if she was to fall (or be pushed). "It's just...I've never been this high up before."

Dan snickered at her obviously fake expression of bravery, his dark eyes narrowed into unsympathetic slits. "Liar. But too bad. If we want to avoid being possibly spotted by your little boyfriend, then we've got to fly this high up."

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Uhuh. Whatever you say."

Sam shot her head around, amethyst eyes glittering with suspicion. "What do you mean by that?" She snapped. Dan smirked, nodding his head at her shoulder; the two fang marks were clearly evident on the pale skin, the moonlight turning the wounds a dull black.

"He did that because he wanted to. Call it marking his territory. He's telling everybody that he likes you and that you belong to him, yet you still don't seem to believe that." Playfully, Dan touched a finger to his lips and smirked, as if pondering something. "Although, I really don't get what he sees in you. I don't remember our taste having anything to do with bossy, overbearing teenage girls."

"**WHAT?!"** Dan winced, the loud scream echoing in his pointed ears. Sam angrily punched his shoulder, her expression furious and, for anyone else, would have been terribly frightening. "What did you say!?"

"Are you deaf as well as stupid? I said that you are bossy and overbearing."

"Aghhhhh!" She lashed out again, but punching the ghost only made her hand hurt. So, she stopped and gave the smirking man a hateful glare. "I swear, if I didn't need your help to save Danny, I'd strangle you right here!"

Amused, Dan grabbed her hand and held it in a lock, his eyes glimmering with sadistic glee. "But that's just it. You need me." He threw the arm down in her lap and sneered. "Now, would you kindly shut up and let me drive? Unless, of course, you want your poor Danny to remain a psychotic monster."

Sam huffed, turning back around and glaring at the cloudy black landscape. A frown unfurled on her purple lips, and she unconsciously let a hand drift up to her shoulders, fingers brushing the bloody wounds cut into the supple skin.

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Plasmius's castle was finally in view! Danny grinned at sight of the monstrous stone structure; for once in his life, the castle actually looked inviting.

"DANIEL!"

"**Shit," **he muttered, and the red light that signified his change quickly enveloped him, morphing his body in midair. Danny was just brushing back a newly colored strand of plain white hair when he saw Plasmius flying towards him, the fellow ghost wearing what could only be an expression of worry.

"Daniel, where were you? I was worried sick!"

Forcing his face into a sheepish smile, Danny laughed shakily and ran a nervous hand through his hair. **"Uhhmm. Sorry Vlad, but I--I needed to get some fresh air. I started thinking about my parents, and--I, I was getting kinda worried about this whole thing. I thought flying might do me some good," **he fibbed, watching earnestly for any disbelief from Plasmius.

The billionaire simply stared at him, but there wasn't any sign of disbelief on his pale face. "Daniel, you really should have told me first. I was worried when I couldn't find you anywhere in the house, and I feared that something might have happened to you."

Inwardly groaning, Danny pulled a contrite expression, anxiously ringing his hands and lowering his eyes. **"Sorry…" **

Plasmius watched him thoughtfully, and finally the older ghost nodded. "It's all right. Just be more considerate next time," he said, running a hand over Danny's hair. The action made Danny want to puke, but he kept his expression perfectly schooled into a faint smile.

"**Ok."**

Smiling, Plasmius gestured for Danny to follow him, and both halfas took off through the air. "I hope your little escapade calmed you enough, Daniel, because it's time."

"**Time….you mean the Ecto-Reverso's done?" **

"Yes, and I know just how to inject your human self with it." With the walls of the castle looming before them, Vlad turned intangible and sank through the stone with practiced ease, sensing Danny's presence beside him as he descended through the floors and came to a stop in his lab, his boots clicking against the concrete. Turning tangible and changing back into his human form, he saw Danny standing beside him, and the teenager followed when he walked over to a metal table and picked up a vial of familiar looking red liquid.

"**Is that it?" **

He must have spoken a little too eagerly, for Vlad glanced at him curiously, suspicion edging into his midnight eyes. Quickly, Danny brought a worried, tentative smile to his face, and Vlad slowly nodded, the edge dying away. "Yes. Now, what I'm thinking is that we could separate you from your human half using the ghost gauntlets," Vlad gestured to a shiny silver pair of mechanical gloves laying on a nearby cabinet, and Danny's eyes widened.

"**The…the ghost gauntlets?" **He shook his head. The irony was incredible, if not a touch annoying.

Mistaking his humor for worry, Vlad laid a reassuring hand on the boy's shoulder. "Of course, it would only be long enough for me to inject your human half with the Ecto-Reverso. After that, I would return your ghost half to your human half." Seeing the teenager's eyes narrow slightly, Vlad smiled at him placidly. "Have no fear. Daniel. I am here to help you. I have no convoluted scheme prepared."

Still frowning, Danny stared at the bottle a moment before giving it a cool smirk. **"Ok...let's do it. Now." **

Plasmius was shocked, to put it simply, and it showed on his pale face. "Now?! But Daniel, don't you want some time to,"

"**NO!" **Instantly Danny regretted yelling, for Vlad immediately stared at him with distrust dawning on his pale features. Inwardly groaning and smacking himself across the face, Danny knew that he would have to pull off some serious acting that he never could have accomplished when good. **"Plasmius, we can't afford to wait any longer! I already hurt my parents and Jazz being this, this screwed up creation,"** he gestured to himself, a grimace of disgust on his face. **"I can't stand it! I don't care how dangerous it might be, or if I get hurt! I need to do this now!" **Danny gasped, feeling the breath rushing out of his lungs as he screamed the last part. **'Yeah, I'm good. I should go to fucking Hollywood with that performance!'**

His award winning routine apparently worked, what with the sympathetic frown Vlad was currently giving the silver haired teen. "Well, I can't say that you haven't made an excellent point. All right, let's get on with it. I'll need you to lie down on that table," Vlad pointed to another table settled against the opposite wall, leather straps loosely thrown across the silver surface.

With a small smile the green-eyed halfa crossed over and climbed onto the stainless steel table, wincing slightly as the cold seeped through and chilled his spandex clad back.

"Now, I'll need you to transform back into your human form," Vlad muttered, busy filling a syringe with the glowing red liquid.

"**WHAT?!" **Danny pushed himself up and glared at the older man, the red tendrils snaking out across his peridot irises. **"But if I change back, then my other half will definitely take control! Why not just rip my human half out while I'm strapped down?"**

Vlad smiled and held up a palm-sized black remote, a red button flashing on the controller. "Because, Daniel, I'd rather have your human half strapped to the table. After all, it is the more threatening one, no?"

"……**yeah. I guess."**

"Well, before you transform, I'll click this button and you'll be strapped down to the table. Then you will change back and I'll remove your ghost half. After that it's as simple as injecting Danny Fenton with another dose of Ecto-Reverso."

Danny glanced at the syringe in his hand, the flickers of red in his eyes darkening, and Vlad swore he saw the teenager smirk.

"**Alright…" **Danny gave a small chuckle. **"I'll be the first to admit it's a good idea." **He laid back on the table and relaxed, watching carefully as the other halfa pressed the button on the remote that made the leather straps on the table glow and snake over his legs and arms. **"Just make sure not to ignore my human half...he'll probably try to say that I'm lying to you or something." **

"Thank you for the concern, Daniel."

Danny smirked at that, and he was sorely tempted to shift back into his natural form.

"However." His heart raced, unease flaring to life inside him, "I know for a fact that you _are_ lying. Everything you've been telling me for the last day has been nothing more than a lie, although a rather good one at that."

"**Wha...what're you talking about," **Danny stammered, his voice layered with confusion. "**Vlad, you're talking crazy! Why would I lie to you?" **

Vlad gave him a dark smile and held up his hand, the syringe gleaming between his fingers. "Don't toy with me, Daniel. I'm in no mood for games. I know that you were only using me to get this," he gave the plunger a gentle push, squirting a stream of red ooze into the air. "And in case you're wondering, I figured out you were lying when I reviewed my security tapes from inside the house. I saw you transform into that monster."

Growling, Danny scowled and resisted the urge to bang his head against something. **'Stupid! I should've known that Vlad would be fucking paranoid enough to have security cameras inside his house! Damn, I am such a fucking idiot!'**

Vlad smirked, running his fingers over the glass syringe. "So. What do you have to say in your defense, Danny Phantom? More lies? Aren't you going to tell me that I'm wrong, or call me a Frootloop and insult my intelligence as you so normally do?"

Danny tore his eyes off the syringe, and, with a cold smirk forming on his lips, focused his gaze on Vlad, letting his eyes fully turn their brilliant, bloodred shade. **"I say you're a paranoid freak who has no social life, a lonely jerk who needs to get himself a fucking cat, and an all around jackass who's about to get his ass kicked." **As he spoke, the red light enveloped his body, transforming his clothes into the tight red, black, and leather guise, his canines elongating and hair draping across his face. Vlad watched the shift with a deep frown, glancing over him with scrutinizing eyes.

"You know, I never thought I'd see you like this. Hard to believe that this is what your dormant side looked like. I imagined it without the leather," he scowled at the leather coat, but Danny grinned and threw back his head in a peal of cruel laughter.

"**And I never thought you could be any more paranoid, but you proved me wrong…you have cameras in your house? Geez," **he rolled his eyes.** "Well, I suppose I should give you credit. The trickster was tricked by the pawn. I'm impressed," **he chuckled. **"I'd say your acting skills are almost as good as my own. Very nicely played. However, I fear you've missed a few details." **

"Such as," Vlad drawled, giving the teenager an inquiring, know-it-all look.

"**Such as you apparently didn't do enough research. There **_**was**_** an accident at my parents house, my other side **_**is**_** taking over, and I do have a chance of going completely insane, as you probably well know." **Danny flashed a fanged smile. **"My darling parents, including your beloved Maddie, are currently residing in the hospital with serious, maybe even life threatening injuries, and Jazz barely made her escape with the few scratches she received. Oh, did I mention that Sam and Tucker are also involved? They stumbled across me after the little incident with the family." **He grinned at the stunned man. **"It's on my to-do list to kill every single one of the aforementioned people, plus a certain other bastard, as soon as possible in the most painful way I can think of. Well, except for one." **

"…..except for one?"

"Danny! Where are you!?"

Both halfa's glanced up at the ceiling, and Danny's eyes lit up as he heard footsteps pounding overhead.

"**Now the party's getting started." **

"Danny….!" Came the cry again, and the younger hybrid smiled when his ghost sense went off. A scream from above made him chuckle, his eyes glowing with glee as a familiar figure clad in black materialized in the middle of the room, tightly grasping the arm of a tall, blue skinned ghost with flaming white hair.

Dan scowled at the laboratory, giving it a cursory glare before turning his gaze to the strapped down halfa laying on the table.

"You're alive."

"**Yeah, more so than you're gonna be," **Danny spat. **"How's your shoulder?" **

At first it looked as if he was talking to Dan, but his eyes were trained on the goth lingering beside Dan, still holding his arm. Sam blinked at the concerned reaction from the smirking boy, but then scowled and shook her head.

"Fine, no thanks to you."

Danny simply smiled at her, but his gaze narrowed as he turned to Vlad, who was staring at Dan and Sam with a mixture of shock and confusion. **"You know, it's kinda nice to see my two main enemies here together," **he smirked at them. **"But, as fascinating as this little reunion will likely turn out to be, lets get down to business." **

In a blink of an eye Danny was gone, his body vanishing from the metal table. Their eyes widened as they glanced around the room, Dan's glowing a brilliant, angry red. Sam glanced at him and then at Vlad, seeing the confused expression on the billionaire's face.

"It must be a trick...those manacles were ghost proof, there was no way he could phase through them." Vlad muttered. "Impossible."

"The cheesehead makes a lovely point, which means you must've done something wrong when you built the damn table and installed those straps. You screwed something up," Dan growled at the man, and Vlad glanced at him in muted rage.

"How dare you, a complete stranger, insinuate something so ludicrous! You have no right! If anything, you are a guest in my home, an uninvited one at that, and I reserve the right to remove you from my property any time I wish!"

Snickering, Dan rolled his eyes and pointed to himself. "Me? An uninvited guest? Apparently young Daniel never told you anything of what happened several months ago, because I have the right to be here just as much as you do. As you don't have the strength to even consider trying to 'remove me' from your home," he smirked, stabbing a forefinger against his chest. "And yes, you had to have done something wrong, 'cause I sure don't see the little brat laying on the table! Do you?"

"Well, it must be a misunderstanding, because I messed nothing up! There's no way Daniel could have escaped the"

"**Unfortunately for you, ghost proofing doesn't work on copies." **

A blast of red energy came out of nowhere and slammed into the billionaire, throwing him back against the wall with a dull crash. He crumpled to the floor, holding a hand against his head, stemming the blood trickling from wound slashed across his temple.

"**You know, you really should have prepared for something like this, if you knew I was evil. I had a pretty good idea that you were going to try something, Plasmius, so I copied myself when I was close enough to be spotted and had the copy go with you. I figured something would go wrong, although I have to admit that I wasn't expecting you to be paranoid enough to have cameras **_**inside **_**the house."**

Sam and Dan glanced over at the grumbling billionaire. "You have cameras inside your house?"

"**Yes, he does. However, I still managed to catch him off guard. He really underestimated me if he thought that I wouldn't have an ace up my sleeve," **Danny snickered, his voice detached and echoing throughout the room.

"So...you had this planned from the beginning," Dan stated to himself. "Getting Vlad to create more Ecto-Reverso, delaying us so that we arrived here just in time, making a copy of yourself and tricking the cheesehead. This was all part of your plan."

"**You bet. I even took the liberty of doing this." **A glowing dome of pink energy popped up around Vlad, and the man glanced at the dome with a startled expression. He reached out and brushed his fingertips over the crackling energy, yelping when it singed his fingertips.

"What's that," Sam made to move towards the dome, but Dan grabbed her wrist and jerked her back.

Danny's voice chuckled. **"A lovely invention that the cheesehead designed. It was made to trap hybrids, like me, which is who he was probably going to use it on. I guess you could say I beat him to the punch!" **

"Nice to hear your sense of humor hasn't died," Dan snapped. "But why don't you be a good boy and take your medicine? You and I have a score to settle."

Sam scowled at him, her purple eyes flashing as she slapped his across the chest. "Oh no you don't! I won't let you hurt him!" Her voice suddenly softened, and she quietly turned away from the smirking man and glanced around the room. "Danny, please. Let us help you."

"**As if. Why would I want to return to that pathetic, weak excuse of a halfa? And once my human half isn't an issue, I'll be unstoppable!" **

Dan smirked at that, glancing at the green dome shrouding Vlad's form from view. "Yeah, but just one problem...the Ecto-Reverso was in the cheesehead's hand, and he's stuck under that dome. The only way you can get to it is if you take the dome down, and then we'd have a chance at getting at it. And something tells me Plasmius isn't going to be too keen on helping you, what with your tricking him and smashing him against a wall."

Mocking laughter was his response, and, as the cruel laughter continued, Danny Phantom emerged from thin air, his eyes gleaming and mouth twisted into an arrogant smirk. **"Please, give me some credit. Did you honestly think I'd forget something so important?" **He held up a hand and uncurled his fingers, and there, laying in his palm, was a miniature vial of glowing liquid.** "What none of you idiots realized is that while I," **he gestured to himself, **"was busy distracting you, a copy of myself snuck into Vlad's lab and switched the Ecto-Reverso with a fake. I then took the real thing with me, and here it is." **Danny rolled the bottle between his fingers, a graceful trick he never would've considered a few days ago.

"You sneaky little brat! You knew all this was going to happen," Vlad cried, his fists clenching and, if not for his being trapped beneath the dome, would have been glowing a bright pink. Dan joined in on glaring at the smirking teenager, though a hint of appreciation flickered in his dark irises.

Sam glanced fearfully between the two, taking a step back towards the wall.

"**Of course I knew! Well, suspected might be a better way of putting it." **Danny raised his other hand, a glowing fireball erupting in his palm. **"Though, some things were more of spur of the moment decisions." **

Dan blinked, a frown forming on his blue face. "Like what...aghhhhh!!!!!!" His mouth contorted into a pained howl when the fireball hit his chest, the ectoplasmic flames burning through his jumpsuit and scorching his skin. "Why you…" he panted, nearly stumbling as he took a step backwards, blood trickling down his chin.

"Dan!" Sam made to run towards him, but a glowing strand of red energy shot out and snaked around her wrist, pulling her roughly to the floor. Her hip throbbed where it met unfeeling concrete, but the pain all but disappeared when she glanced up and saw burning red eyes gazing into hers. "Get away!" She lashed out, trying to hit the teen, but Danny caught her wrist neatly in his hand and jerked it back, all the while wagging a mocking finger in her face.

"**Ah ah ah, can't have you doing that. I don't want to hurt you, Sammy, but if you keep annoying me I might just lose my temper. But Dan…" **he nodded towards the ghost, who was holding a hand against the wound on his chest and wincing. **"He's a different story." **

Sam held back a sob at the dark look in Danny's eyes, and instead glared up at him in strict defiance. "No, he's not! Even if Dan is a cold and ruthless bastard, he doesn't deserve to die!"

Danny bristled in obvious distaste, glancing impatiently at the older ghost with a murderous stare. **"Yeah? Well, I disagree." **He threw himself forward, grabbing the pain stricken ghost by the collar and slamming him down onto the table. His movements were so quick Sam didn't even realize that he'd moved until she saw Dan struggling against the hand grasping his neck.

His screams of rage were hoarse, but several phrases caught Danny's ear while he bent down and grabbed the black remote off the floor, pressing the glowing button and sneering at his rival when the manacles closed over Dan's wrists and ankles.

"I'm going to wring your scrawny neck when I get out of these," Dan yelled, anxiously thrashing against the leather bonds. Sneering, Danny threw the remote on the nearest counter and turned towards the shocked two watching him.

"Daniel, what are you doing?!"

Ignoring Vlad's panicked cry, Danny turned towards Sam and held up the tiny bottle in his hand, the red liquid sloshing around inside. **"Now that he's out of the way, let's get down to business. Sam, I have a proposition for you. Either you help me inject my human half with this, or else I'll kill these two bastards without a second thought. Your choice."**

**End of Chapter 6**


	7. Chapter 7

"_**Now that he's out of the way, let's get down to business. Sam, I have a proposition for you. Either you help me inject my human half with this, or else I'll kill these two bastards without a second thought. Your choice."**_

_Sam's eyes widened in shock, and she stared up at the red eyed halfa in horror._

"_No! I won't do it! Danny, please, you--you can't be serious! Don't you see what you're doing is wrong?! This isn't who you are! I--no! I won't do it! No!"_

"_**No?" **__Danny flashed her a cruel smile. __**"Well then, let me change my earlier statement. You either inject my human half with this," **__he held up the bottle of sloshing red liquid, __**"or else I'll kill your precious Danny Fenton." **_

_Sam frowned, her amethyst eyes narrowing slightly, though the panic was inching across her purple irises. "But, he's a part of you. How could you kill him," _

"_He's going to rip out his humanity." A chill ran down her spine, and Sam slowly looked past Danny at the blue skinned ghost sprawled out over the metal table, who was staring at his younger counterpart with a strange expression on his face. "I did the same thing ten years ago. That's how he was planning on turning his other half evil all along." A smirk unfurled on his lips, and Dan shook his head and glared at Danny. "I didn't think you had it in you."_

_Fear washed over Sam like a wave of cold water. "No…he wouldn't do that," she whispered, her hands desperately clutching her sides, tears stinging in her eyes. _

_With a low chuckle Danny grinned at her, running his tongue over a sharp fang. __**"Oh, but I would…" **__he sauntered over and grabbed her wrist, jerking it up and lifting her off the floor. __**"And I will." **__With a jerk of his arm Sam went flying across the floor, her head smacking against the stone and nearly knocking her unconscious._

"_Daniel! Leave her alone! Don't you see what you're doing," Vlad screamed, pounding furiously against the barrier and hissing when every contact left his skin burned raw. _

"_**Shut up already. Damn, you're so annoying," **__Danny shot a bolt of red ectoplasm at the barrier and laughed as electricity crackled across the base, shooting through the silver haired man and making him cry in pain. Only a few moments later he fell to the floor, unconscious._

_Sam had heard Vlad screaming, but when she tried to sit up she instead hissed in pain, raising a hand to touch the stinging cut slashed across her face. She heard footsteps echoing across the walls, and groggily she raised her head, wincing as red irises met hers._

"_**Just stay down, I rather not hurt you," **__Danny suggested, running a tender hand over her hair before moving towards a cabinet on which were resting a pair of silver gauntlets. Grabbing them off the counter, he slipped them onto his hands and grinned as glowing red claws popped out from the fingertips. _

"_And everyone says I'm a jerk." The goth glanced up at the ghost lying on the table, but she couldn't even see a flicker of warmth in his icy red eyes. "I don't give a damn what you do to her, but you messed with the wrong ghost," Dan growled, and, with a renewed strength, began tugging at the straps binding his arms and legs._

_Danny glared at him, pointing a glowing claw at Dan and hissing menacingly. __**"You just shut up and be quiet. The only reason you're even alive is 'cause Sam doesn't want you dead," **__he snapped at his older self, his eyes narrowing as he turned the claws towards his chest._

"_NO!" _

_He went stumbling back with a yelp when Sam launched herself at him, the goth grabbing his shirt and pushing him to the ground. His hair fell over his face, but he could see Sam hovered over him. "I won't let you! Danny, please don't do this! I love the good you, the Danny that helps people, the Danny that...AGGHH!!!!" Sam screamed when she felt a metal hand touch her wounded shoulder, the palm erupting in ectoplasm and sizzling the skin underneath. "Danny, stop!!! STOP!" _

_Snarling in discomfort, Danny gently rolled her over so that she was laying on the concrete, her hair fanning out behind her head and breathing unnaturally labored. Pain glazed her eyes, but the anger flared to life when she glanced at her shoulder and saw the two wounds etched into her skin. _

"_Damn. Sadistic much?"_

"_**Didn't I tell you to shut up," **__Danny barked at Dan, who was watching the encounter with a cruel smile. __**"Just because**__**Sam wants you alive doesn't I won't rip you apart, you fucked up bastard! **_

"_No! Don't do it!" A tug on the hem of his coat made Danny glance down, and he frowned when he saw Sam staring up at him and glaring with all her might. "I won't let you!"_

"_**Don't test my patience, Sam. I won't let you get in my way." **__He gently pushed her away, and Sam glared up at him with teary eyes, too weak to move. __**"Now, back to business…" **__Danny whispered, raising his gloved hands up to eye level, the glowing talons an exact match to his ruby eyes. _

_Pressing a palm against his chest, he turned his shirt and jacket intangible and let the clothes fall to the floor. Left naked from the waist up, he took a deep breath and positioned the claws against his abdomen, the tips gently brushing the healing scar slashed across his flesh. __**"Damn, I must be really fucked up to do this," **__he growled, and the ferocious looking claws sank into his chest, the needle tips piercing his skin and marking four long gashes of glowing red down his stomach._

"_Danny!"_

_He ignored the cry and sank the claws deeper into his chest, a burning pain ripping at his torso and coursing down his legs. It hurt, maybe worse than when the Ecto-Reverso had infected him! Groaning, he pushed the claws deeper, and the tips sank into something, something with screamed inside his head. Danny tried to hold out a little longer, to get a better grasp on the writhing figure with the claws, but the burning in his abdomen and the cries inside his mind were growing to be too much. Letting out a snarl laced with an agonizing cry, he ripped the gloves off and tossed them away, sinking to his knees on the floor and wrapping an arm around the four wounds slashed into his skin, unnoticing of the scrawny boy that fell with the gauntlets. _

_Sam cried out as the pale boy collided to the floor and moaned in pain, wrenching the dripping red talons out of his midriff. He tossed them aside, his teeth gritted into a pained grimace as he glanced at the white haired teen. Red eyes met icy blue and the two boys scowled at one another_

"_Danny?!"_

_They both ignored her, choosing to glare at one another with fire in their eyes._

"_Hmmph, he actually did it. I'm surprised." _

_The human Danny glanced up at Dan, a smirk appearing on his blood splattered face. "You still stuck there. Seems the almighty Dan isn't so powerful after all," he mocked, and Dan shot him a narrow-eyed scowl._

"_Never thought I'd say it, but you might be even more annoying than your other half," Dan nodded towards the white haired Danny. "I can see why he wants to turn you evil. I still don't get what you both see in her though," he nodded his head towards the slumped goth, who stared at him and frowned confusedly. _

"_**Yeah, and it's that stupidity that makes me want to kill you all the more…" **__with a cold smile Danny raised his head, glowing red eyes staring unflinchingly at his other self. __**"And as for you," **__he snarled, reaching out and grabbing the black haired teen by the shirt. __**"This was late in the coming!" **_

_A vicious punch sent his head snapping to the side, the blow almost enough to snap his neck. Gripping the collar of his counterpart's shirt, Danny growled and grabbed a handful of the boy's hair, jerking his head up and sneering at his determined frown._

"_Daniel...stop…" the tired whisper barely reached his ears, but Danny heard and glanced over at the glowing dome. His smirk widened at the sight of Vlad struggling to break the barrier, and with a nonchalant shrug he climbed to his feet, holding Danny Fenton aloft in the air._

"_**Stop what? This?" **_

_A glowing fist was thrust into his stomach, a scream of pain tearing from his lips as he fell slack in the boy's hand. "You...bast...bastard," he panted. "You--you're no be--better than him." He shakingly jerked his head towards the immobile Dan, who promptly glared and bared his fangs in a cruel smile. "If--if you're gonna kill me, then ge--get on with it!"_

"_Danny!" Sam pushed herself up, grimacing a bit as a dull ache raced down her side. "Leave him alone!"_

"_Daniel, you must stop this! You know this isn't how you want to be," Plasmius pleaded from within his barrier, spidery hands anxiously pounding against the sparkling energy. _

_Danny glanced at him and smirked, holding out his left hand and opening it to reveal the bottle of glowing Ecto-Reverso, his free hand still twisted in his human half's shirt. __**"You're right. THIS is how I want to be." **__He held it out to Sam, but she stared at it with a frown and shook her head, though she hesitantly started reaching for it unconsciously. _

"_Don't do it Sam. Unless you want another guy like me running around, then don't do it," Dan warned, his hooded eyes glaring at Danny's back. _

"_Ms. Manson, don't be foolish!" _

_Sam casted them a glance, but then she felt fingers gripping her chin and turning her face back._

"_**Remember what I told you…" **__Danny hissed. __**"Either you give him this, or else I rip him apart limb...from...limb," **__he shook the black haired boy, who furiously kicked in Danny's grasp._

_The girl blanched, and his human half glared at him with shadowed blue eyes. Twisting, he landed a solid quick to Danny's midriff, and, gasping, the white haired boy dropped him and kneeled on the floor. Falling to his knees as well, human Danny and ghost Danny were eye to eye, and both were wearing the same dark glare. "You bastard. I don't care what you do to me, just don't hurt her!" _

"_**I wouldn't hurt her! You know very well that I love her," **__the red eyed phantom snarled, his voice low enough so only his counterpart could hear. _

"_Oh yeah, that's why you wanted __her _to be the one to inject me with that junk!"

"**What the hell do you know? You never even got up the guts to ask her out! At least I show my feelings for her, while you just sat back and cowered,"**

"Hate to interrupt the little spat you two are having, but could you save it for another time? We have more important things to worry about than your damn love life!"

Both Danny's turned and glared at Dan, who, with his apparent remarkable hearing, had heard the entire conversation. He nearly winced, however, at the sadistic look on both teen's faces, and, if not for the straps binding him, he very well might have fled for his life.

"**That's it. I've had enough of you…" **came the low snarl, and a blast of red ectoplasm hit the metal table, sending shots of red electricity across the surface that began frying his skin through the spandex, in some places melting the material to his flesh. Dan squeezed his eyes shut at the burning pain that surged up and down his body, howling in pain as the red ectoplasm bit into his exposed skin and drew glowing blood.

"What're you doing," Sam and the human Danny cried, Vlad's scream following behind theirs. With a demonic sounding growl, Danny grabbed Sam's upper arm and hauled her to her feet, at the same time snatching a handful of his counterpart's shirt and throwing him against the wall.

"**Make your choice now, Sam. I'm willing to kill my other half, just as willing as I am to kill everyone else in this room!" **He cupped a glowing fireball in his free hand and threw it at the barrier surrounding Vlad, vaguely hearing the older man cry out in pain. With tears glowing in her eyes, Sam glanced from Danny to the tiny bottle lying in his palm.

"Don't make her do this," the teen slumped against the wall murmured, and Danny jerked his gaze over to him, eyes narrowing at the calm expression on the boy's face. "I know how you feel, and it's because of those feelings that you can't do this." Slowly, the human Danny tilted his head up, blue eyes boring into flaming red irises. "I'll take that stuff," he nodded at the tiny bottle, "but I wanna know something first."

"No!" Sam made as if to run over to the slumped teen, but Danny grabbed her arm again and pushed her back out of the way.

"**And what would that be?" **

A long pause created total silence amongst the group, the tension so thick even an ectoplasmic beam wouldn't have cut through it. Finally, human Danny moved away from the wall and stood face to face with his other half, leaning forward so that his lips were by Danny's ear. "You say you love Sam...how do I know that's true?"

The goth watched the two Danny's stare at each other, resisting the urge to reach out and touch the two. With a heavy sigh-which was totally uncharacteristic-the white haired teen gave a half hearted smirk, elegantly crossing his arms over his chest.

"**I may be your ghost half, but you and I do share the same feelings...besides, being evil doesn't mean I'm devoid of **_**all**_** the sappy emotions you seem to have." **That sent the other boy into silence, and after several seconds he too gave a long sigh.

"Hand it over."

"WHAT?"

The yell came from Sam, Plasmius, and Dan, but both boys ignored them.

Danny held out his hand to his human half, dropping the tiny bottle of Ecto-Reverso into the boy's palm. Cupping it, he pulled the stopper out of the top and started to raise it towards his lips.

"Don't do it! Daniel, please reconsider!"

"I thought you promised your precious family that you weren't going to become me!"

That caught both Danny's attentions, but it was the human one that turned around to stare at Dan.

"I'm not going to become you...there's one thing about me that'll always be different from you," he replied, sparing a quick glance at Sam; the goth was frozen on the spot, her eyes wide and rimmed in red from crying. He smiled at her and, with a cool smile, brought the bottle to his lips, tilting it so that the ruby liquid barely skimmed his lips. Deliberately he took a long look at Danny, quietly motioning to the stricken girl. Taking the hint, the other Danny walked over and draped an arm around her waist, holding her snugly against his chest.

Smiling, though sadly, he opened his mouth and the glowing liquid slid down his throat, the empty bottle falling uselessly to the floor and shattering into several different pieces. Immediately after Danny started to grimace in pain, his whole body shaking as a burning feeling filled his every pore. With a dull moan he stumbled to the floor, his breath coming in ragged pants, and iridescent tears began to well up in his closed blue eyes.

"Danny! Help him," Sam yelled at his ghost half.

Danny snorted, passing his scathing glare over the trembling boy. **"Why the hell should I?" **

"Because I'll never forgive you if you don't," she screamed, throwing an angry punch at his arm. "Help him! Please!"

Falling silent, Danny glanced at her before settling his gaze on his other half. **"Damn it all, you owe me for this," **he groaned. Pushing Sam off to the side, Danny kneeled before the panting teenager and laid a hand on his back. When blue eyes glanced up and met his, Danny scowled and leaned down, whispering beside his ear, **"I am not doing this for you, understand?"**

"I wouldn't expect anything less from my evil half," human Danny managed a smile, be it a weak one, and he slowly reached out and grasped the other Danny's free hand, painfully gripping the slender fingers.

For a minute nothing happened, but then his lips parted in what seemed to be a soundless cry, eyes squeezing shut and the other hand clenching into a fist. Groaning, the red eyed Danny clenched his fingers into the t-shirt of his other and choked back a scream. An unearthly glow erupted around his and human Danny's clasped hands, and both their eyes glowed a bright, electric red. Both screamed in pain and their hands nearly slipped, but the ghost half of the two grunted and tightened his fingers around the other boy's, even as his skin crackled with red ectoplasm.

"Since when could he do that?!" Sam tore her eyes away from the two quick enough to catch the expression of total shock on Dan's face, the ghost's glowing eyes wide with amazement. "I've never even seen a power like that before!"

"What's he doing? It, it looks like he's in pain," Sam managed to say, goose bumps rising on her flesh as she heard the two Danny's let out echoing agonized screams.

"He _is_ in pain. Somehow Daniel has managed to take some of his human half's pain unto himself, though how he is doing it is beyond me," an astounded Plasmius muttered. "Such power. It's unbelievable! I didn't know Daniel possessed such astounding abilities."

Sam, her face frozen into a look of terror, ran over to the two and dropped down beside them, a hand reaching out to lightly touch the boys. "Danny?" At her whisper, both teens seemed to visibly calm, and Sam felt a long sigh tear from her lips when the two finally stopped panting and shuddering in pain. "Danny…?"

"**Well, that seemed to work out well." **Their faces looked up and met hers, and the goth jumped at the sight of two pairs of bloodred eyes staring back at her. A sadistic smile crossed both of their faces, and in a sudden burst of dark red light the two were replaced with one, a very familiar looking halfa clad in black and red. **"I can't believe I'm saying this, but it feels sooo good to be together again," **Danny stretched, all the while keeping his eyes focused on Sam. **"Mmm, it's unbelievable how well that stuff works!" **

"Daniel…"

The halfa jerked his head towards the dome covered billionaire, and he directed a malevolent smile at Vlad, his red eyes falling into glowing slits.

"**You know, I've got to thank you, Plasmius. Without you, none of this would've happened!" **Danny gave a low laugh, his hand reaching into a pocket and withdrawing a tiny palm sized remote. **"Considering that, I should probably let you out of that dome…" **he chuckled.

"Well, isn't that nice of you," Dan spat from the table, his eyes glaring at the young halfa. Danny just gave him a small shrug. **"Hmm, you're right. Too bad that's not how I work!" **With a loud clatter the remote fell to the floor, and everyone let out a gasp when Danny smashed a booted foot down on the device, bits and pieces scattering all across the floor. His smirk widening, Danny flew forward in a swish of leather and grabbed the startled goth, hoisting her into his arms and effectively pinning her arms and legs.

"Let me go!" Sam struggled and pushed against the halfa's chest, but his arms only tightened around her and held her immobile. "What're you doing?!"

"**Taking what's mine." **

Before Sam could even respond, Danny had placed two fingers on the side of the girl's neck and pressed, his nails digging into the tender pressure points. Letting out a soft cry, Sam fell slack in his arms.

"Daniel, let her go!"

"**Yeah right. I'm really going to listen to you," **he mocked, hoisting the slender girl over his shoulder. Her body dangled uselessly, dark hair lolling over her face and shrouding the pale features cast into a quiet mask.

"This is a new low, even for you," Dan growled, thrusting against the leather bonds and hissing as pain shot down his legs and arms. "What're you gonna do to her?"

Danny glanced at him, and the venomous gleam in his eyes was so potent, so cruel, that Dan had to grimace as the fiery orbs were turned on him. **"What do **_**you **_**think I'm going to do to her…"** he purred, his voice dangerously soft and carrying a deceivingly silken quality. **"Tell me, Dan Plasmius…" **Danny stepped over to the table, his free hand glowing with ectoplasm. He held it up, smirking at the defiant look on his alternate's face. **"Why do you even care what I do to her? Do you still harbor feelings for Sam?"**

"Hell no. I lost all ability to care for someone ten years ago," Dan snarled. "That annoying girl is a nuisance, a flaw of humanity, just like you. Neither one of you should exist."

"…**..yeah. You're right." **Danny pulled his hand away, dropping it to his side. **"I shouldn't exist. But the higher power or whatever decided to curse humanity with my fucked existence, so here I am." **

Moving Sam down into his arms, Danny cradled her and went intangible, his insane cackling ringing off the concrete walls as he vanished from the room. As he disappeared, an alarm started going off in the room, and Dan and Vlad's hearts stopped when they heard a familiar cool voice speaking, "Portal to explode in thirty seconds."

"What! I just changed the ecto-filtrator last month!" Vlad cried from underneath the dome, and Dan shot him a panicked glare.

"Use your brain, you ignorant fool! He must have tampered with it!"

"Portal to explode in fifteen seconds."

With a snarl Dan resumed his struggle, throwing his body up and desperately thrashing against the leather, and Plasmius pressed his hands-now covered with glowing ectoplasm-against his barrier, choking back his scream of pain.

"PORTAL TO EXPLODE IN TEN, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN, SIX, FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE…"

**End of Chapter 7**


	8. Chapter 8

**BOOM! **The explosion ripped through the air, the blast ear-deafening and tearing the castle into bits and pieces of stone and metal. Several pieces of broken stone fell to the street leading up to the former castle, one large slab nearly smashing into a plain black car that was driving up the road. The vehicle lurched to a stop just short of driveway, the occupants inside gazing out in horror as the blast and rubble finally diminished, a cloud of dust erupting around the site.

"What happened?!" With a whoosh the window rolled down, and, had Danny been there, he would have been surprised to see Jazz and Tucker peering out, their eyes wide and mouths agape.

"Dude, how much you wanna bet this was Danny's doing," Tucker said, and the redhead nodded. "Hey, do you think anybody was…" he drifted off, afraid to say any more. Jazz glanced at him, and in a flurry was out the door and running up the driveway. "Hey, Jazz, wait up!" Tucker scrambled after her, but the girl was already standing at the top of the hill when he, wheezing and gasping, finally managed to reach the pile of gray rubble. "Geez, Ja--Jazz--" he panted, nearly stumbling to the ground as he fought to catch his breath.

"Tucker, Dan's bike is still here!" Jazz pointed a finger at the once proud silver machine; the bike was practically buried under several large boulders, but that didn't hide the damage that had been inflicted on the motorcycle. Scratches and dents marred the silver and black paint, and the two had to grimace at the smashed gears and dials. The leather seat was shredded, and the metal handlebars were nothing more than half molten pieces of blackened metal. It was a mass.

"Oh man, he is gonna be really pissed."

Jazz stiffened, her gaze quickly sweeping the surrounding rubble. "Oh my god…" she whispered. Tucker glanced at her, his curious expression fading into one of absolute horror as he followed her trail of sight; peeking out of a particularly large pile of broken stones was a tattered scrap of black and white spandex, the material splattered with dust and tiny spots of green blood. Near the edge, they could see the points that were once the side of his and Danny's DP emblem, but the cloth was so singed and ripped that it was hard to discern the familiar symbol.

The two scrambled over the rocks and twisted metal, both teens lunging for the scrap of cloth. As Jazz's hand snared the spandex, a loud groan reached their ears from under the mound of stone. A lone hand, pale blue in color, reached out and emerged from the rubble, the fingers weakly grasping at the pieces of stone.

"Tucker, help me get this stuff off him," Jazz cried, already digging into the large pile. Together they pulled stone after stone off the mound, though the teens still had to struggle to tug and move aside some of the larger rocks from the pile. Jazz reached for a rock close to the twitching blue palm, but drew back with a cry when the rocks started to glow a bright ectoplasm green. "Umm, Tucker, we might want to move!" She jumped away from the pile, dragging a startled Tucker behind her, and only a split second later the heap was blasted away by the green glow.

The echoing roar was only a fraction of its predecessor, but the redhead barely managed to pull herself and Tucker to the ground before shards of finely ground stone shot over them. One particularly jagged piece ripped through Jazz's shoulder, a second lightly nicking Tucker's cheek. "Oww…." he pressed his palm over the wound, offering the other to the bleeding redhead. "Jazz, you ok?"

"I'd say she's better off than me and the cheesehead."

From the remains of the shattered stone stumbled a scratched and bruised Dan, his eyes unnaturally dull as he clasped a hand against his side, where he knew there were several broken ribs that were going to be a bitch to heal.

Jazz stared at him, her face a mixture of shock and pity. "What happened to you?"

"What the hell do you think," Dan snapped, his voice tinged with pain. Wrapping an arm around his naked waist and supporting his ribs, Dan climbed over the rubble, hissing in pain, and joined the two, giving them a full view of his tattered physique.

What remained of his suit was a pair of pants marred with countless burns, tears, and green bloodstains. Only a thin strip of black and white material ran over his shoulder that connected the pants back to front, the cloth not even beginning to hide his chest, a plane of flesh slashed, burned, and bruised beyond belief. Jazz felt her gaze travel up his body and land on his face, her eyes filling with horror as she saw the endless tiny scratches inflicted on his bluish skin. Green blood seemed to continually trickle down his cheeks, one particular wound on his neck, though attempting to heal, staining his chest a peridot green with the slick blood.

"Yeah, I know. I look like hell," he waved a bruised hand. His baritone voice-usually pleasant, if not a touch seductive-was icy cold and a bit frightening to hear, and both Tucker and Jazz shuddered at the murderous look on his face. "Just wait till I get my hands on the brother of yours. I'm going to strangle him! What I did to my weakness will pale in comparison!" He stopped shouting long enough to glance down at himself, a disgusted look coming over his face as he saw the damage done to him. "That's the second time he made a building collapse on me…"

"Yeah, it is, isn't it?"

Dan casually shot a bright beam of ectoplasm at Tucker, smirking and feeling somewhat self satisfied at the loud yelp the teen gave when he fell back on his butt.

"Oh, grow up," Jazz threw at him. Dan scowled at her, but the expression faded as he brought a hand up to brush his wounded cheek.

"Something's not right here...this isn't…" he muttered, his eyes scanning the scattered ruins. A curious glance from Tucker and Jazz made him frown, and Dan took a step back away from the rocks he'd been buried under, shaking his head. "I...I shouldn't be alive. A blast like that should've killed me!"

With a feverish gusto, Dan fell to his knees and started pawing through the blasted stone, his hands-already bloody and burned-becoming more battered with every rock he removed. Finally, he held up the burnt remains of what appeared to be a leather strap. "Look at this!"

"Umm, why are we looking at a leather strap?" Tucker frowned at the simple piece of leather, taking it and eyeing the deceivingly normal material.

"It was because of that leather strap that I was strapped down to a table, unable to use my powers. Long story," he added, noticing the curious looks on their faces. "Basically, that strap was ghost proof, and I had two of those binding me when the castle exploded. Logically, I should be dead, or at least near death. There's no way I should have been able to walk away from a blast like that." Dan winced.

Did those two even realize how close to death…obliviation he had come?

"Listen, we can focus on that later. Now, as much as it pains me to say it, we need to...ughh...save Plasmius." He shuddered, the words leaving a highly unpleasant taste in his mouth. It didn't help that both Jazz and Tucker were staring at him like he was crazy, although they could probably argue the point.

"No thanks to you three, there's no need! I'm already halfway out of this pile!"

They whirled around, Dan letting out a snort of laughter at the sight before them; Vlad was partially buried under a pile of broken stone and machinery, but that wasn't what made all three break out into hysterical laughter. No, it was the fact that while Vlad was **attempting** to pull himself out of the rubble, the base of the pile shifted and the halfa ended up falling flat on his face.

"Oh, snicker doodle!" His cheeks flushed a rosy pink, Vlad struggled and managed to push himself up. Shooting an icy say-one-word-and-you're-dead look towards Jazz and Tucker, he picked himself up and dusted off his suit, but Dan continued to chuckle in his rich, melodic voice, his smile cold as he stared at the billionaire.

"Don't tell me the great Vlad Plasmius can't defeat a little pile of rocks," he smirked.

Vlad growled in response; Dan was just as good as Danny when it came to taunting his enemies. "Of course I can!" He pried himself free from the last rock, and, with a pointed glare in Dan's direction, he stood up and stretched. "You are the one who apparently can't defeat a pile of rocks, considering who looks the worse for wear," he added with a chuckle, glancing his comrade over.

Dan answered with a low snarl, but it faded away after only a few seconds, morphing into what Tucker and Jazz had come to realize was his 'evil laugh'.

"Yeah, this is coming from a man who's bitter and alone...not to mention a frootloop."

Vlad's eyes widened, his face a blend of confusion and anger. The nickname stung, but what made him really confused was that Danny was the only one to ever call him that. "Just who the hell are you?! I've never even seen you before you came barging into my castle, but you have insulted me for the last time, when I had every intention of treating you with courtesy! Tell me who you are…" he demanded, pointing a glowing hand towards Dan.

The air surrounding them seemed to grow cold as death, and the look Dan was giving Vlad was just as bad. "I wouldn't recommend it," he whispered, his voice soft as silk, and yet even Plasmius noticed the demonic gleam in his red eyes, the way the bloody orbs lit up like flames from hell. "Unless you want to die, then put it down, Plasmius…"

"……I.….apologize for being so rash."

The billionaire dropped his hand, taking a step back and furthering himself from the flame haired ghost. Dan remained frozen in place, his glare focused on the silver haired man, until a loud cough finally broke the tense silence.

"Umm, I'm guessing that you two aren't going to kill each other," Tucker said, goofy grin barely hiding the look of downright terror in his eyes.

They glanced at each other, both radiating hatred as they scowled and turned away.

"Not today, at least. I still have a certain halfa that needs taking care of before I worry about the cheesehead," Dan smirked, the air of superiority around him enough to make anyone want to gag. Jazz and Tucker sighed, both teens rolling their eyes.

"More importantly, we should probably get away from here. Danny seems to be gone, but...hey, where's Sam?" Jazz finally seemed to notice the lacking of their friend's presence. Plasmius and Dan tore their gaze away from hers, both men busying themselves by dusting off their clothes or inspecting their injuries, but the redhead wasn't to be deterred. "Where is Sam?!"

Neither one of the ghosts spoke a word, and Jazz's eyes grew wide with panic.

"Where is she?!"

"Jazz!"

She nearly jumped out of her skin as Tucker lightly tapped her on the shoulder. "What," Jazz started to scream, but her voice caught as she stared at the simple green hair band laying in the boy's palm. Slowly, she reached out and brushed her fingers over the pale cloth covered elastic. "He took her...Danny took her, didn't he?"

Dan nodded, his mouth set into a stern frown. "There wasn't anything we could do."

Jazz stared at him, her hand still grasping the peridot colored hair band.

"Dude, whaddya mean there wasn't anything you could do," Tucker cried.

A cold smile darkened Dan's handsome face, and he motioned to leather dangling from the boy's hand. "Those things were ghost proof, and two of them were keeping me pinned to a table."

"And, I was trapped under a dome of ectoplasmic energy. Both of us were out of commission. After Daniel was restored to his full self, and by that I mean his evil self, he disappeared from the lab"

"And took Sam with him," Dan finished.

Jazz and Tucker glanced between the two ghouls, searching their faces with scrutinizing eyes.

"Whether you want to believe us or not is your guys' problem, but we're telling the truth. What's important now is focusing on how we're going to beat Danny, especially since he's fully evil now."

An uneasy look appeared on Jazz's face, but with a hesitant frown she glanced at Tucker. He shrugged, the same frown uncurling on his lips. "Ok," she sighed. "We believe you." Glancing around the destroyed grounds, she shook her head. "Let's get out of here."

Dan and Plasmius started following Jazz as she started back down the hill towards the car, both ghosts bruised, battered, and shooting death glares at one another. "Hey, how did you guys get here anyways? Did Jazzy-pants steal a car or something," Dan snickered, but pain layered his voice as he tightened the grip of his ribs, holding the broken bones together.

The mention of vehicles sparked a memory, and Tucker ran after Jazz and grabbed her sleeve. "Hey Jazz, do you think we should tell Dan about his bike? I mean, do you think he"

"Hey, where's my bike?"

Jazz and Tucker could hear Dan's bellow of rage from the bottom of the driveway, and the two scrambled to get in the car. Lucky too, for only seconds after that a loud roar of blinding green energy exploded at the hill's top, Dan's scream echoing behind it, powerfully magnified.

"I'd say it's safe to assume he found his bike," Jazz grimaced.

"Yep. He's gonna be pissed."

"Definitely."

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

A dull pain was the first thing she felt. A dull, burning ache that lingered in her head and traveled down her back. Sam breathed a moan as the ache increased, and her eyes slowly fluttered open, which only brought more pain to her young body.

"Man, my neck's killing me," she muttered. It hurt, but she turned her head to the sides and glanced around, but all she could make out was dark walls, a gilded mirror, and several lamps with bases of what looked like gold. "Where the heck am I?"

The light, while dim enough to where it didn't allow full sight, was still illuminated enough so that she could see that she was sitting on a massive bed decorated with dark red and black sheets. Long curtains blocked off what she assumed were windows, but she could see the barest hint of light beneath their hems.

"**You've been out for a couple of hours." **

The velvety tones suddenly echoed off the stone walls, the smooth, rich, and utterly wicked voice one that Sam all too well recognized.

"Danny?"

The dark laughter that was her response sent shivers up her spine, and it didn't help that Sam had just remembered one little detail. She'd been kidnapped, by the guy she loved no less!

"Danny, where are you?! Get out here!"

She growled under her breath as the laughter continued, but Sam couldn't help the goose bumps that rose on her skin when the wicked laughter washed over. Danny's voice was deep, rich, a smooth baritone that

"**Thinking about me?" **

Sam choked back a scream when a pair of pale, scar littered arms wrapped around her waist, her back going rigid against a nicely muscled chest. "And why would I be thinking about you," she snapped, trying to twist away from the warm hold. Danny's arms remained firm, lazily draped over her hips, his hands pressing against her bare midriff. Sam sighed under her breath as Danny gently ran one of his hands up her chest and in between her breasts, his warm palm coming to rest on the hollow of her neck.

"**Well, I know I was thinking about you****," **he gently kissed her shoulder, chuckling under his breath as she shuddered, her nails digging into his arms.

"Really? Well--I guess I was thinking about you," Sam murmured, glancing over her shoulder. Danny smirked, his hooded eyes gleaming as he loosened his arms, letting her turn around.

"**Were you?"**

"Oh yeah," she grabbed a handful of his shirt and jerked him close. "I was thinking about how I wanted to repay you." Her lips suddenly curved down into a frown, and Danny caught the warning signs all too late. A pale hand slammed into his cheek, throwing his head back with a dull crack. His eyes widened as he brought a hand to his wounded cheek, cupping the bruised area and staring at the girl. "That was for what you did, you jerk," Sam screamed, throwing another brutal punch and successfully knocking him flat on his back.

"**You know, that actually hurt," **he murmured, watching the angry girl scowl above him.

"I wanted it to! Danny, how could you?! You--you jerk! It's all your fault!" She didn't even wait for him to respond, instead beating her fists against his chest and fully ignoring the annoyed scowls being shot her way. "You were going to make him--and Dan, you--aghh! Danny, I can't believe you!"

The wacks from her fists would've hurt a normal human, but Danny barely felt the blows as they continued hitting his already injured torso. His face, on the other hand, hurt, and he knew his cheekbone was cracked, if not broken. **'Good thing I'm a halfa,' **the thought comforted him, but his annoyance was slowly overriding any normalcy he might have felt about the situation. Sam wasn't stopping her tirade anytime soon, and he knew his temper was going to explode if he didn't do something. So, he did the only logical thing he could think of at the time; he dug his fingers into her sides, the one spot where she was ticklish.

Her cries were cut off as a loud giggle burst from her lips, her fists loosely falling to her side as she let out a peal of laughter.

"**I thought that would work," **Danny grinned. Gently pushing the brunette off of him, Danny grabbed her shoulder and pinned her to the bed, sitting astride her hips as he waited for her insane laughter to die away. It finally did, and Sam's enraged expression returned when she noticed that she was sprawled out over the bed with Danny sitting on top of her. **"You know, I think you cracked something." **He rubbed his cheek, but nothing could dissuade the grin on his face when he saw the rage sparkling in her purple eyes. **"And may I point out, none of this is technically my ****fault. You have my darling parents and Jazz to thank for all this. After all, I wouldn't be this monster if not for them."**

"You could've changed back! All you had to do was let us help you! Plasmius could've found a cure," Sam cried. "That was your fault!"

"**True, but you can't blame me. Remember, Sam, it's in my nature to be like this. Why would I want to change back when I like being this way?" **

That made her pause, her purple eyes flickering with doubt as she stared up at the grinning boy. Taking advantage of her silence, Danny leaned down and smirked, hearing her low gasp when he breathed a quiet growl by her ear. **"I'll let you sit up, but you have to promise not to hit me again. I don't need another hurt cheek. Deal?"**

Sam glared at him a second before nodding, and Danny scooted back and let her sit up. "I remember, in case you forgot. You made him take the Ecto-Reverso." Obviously, there was no question as to who he was.

"**I didn't make him do anything. He willingly agreed to it."**

Releasing an exasperated cry, Sam pounded her fists on the bed, since she couldn't hit Danny again. "Whatever, but you threatened him, and Dan and Plasmius too! I don't even like them, but you…" she broke off, a horrified expression crossing her pale face. "Oh no….Danny, you--you left them there! Dan, Plasmius--you let them die!" Bile rose in her throat, but she choked it back and glared at the smirking boy that looked like Danny, talked like Danny, and yet wasn't the Danny she knew and loved. 'Or is he?' The betraying thought registered in her angry mind, and it was with a mental growl that she glanced over the boy sitting before her; shaggy white hair with black tips, red eyes, curved fangs. Those weren't features she remembered, nor were the clothes that costumed his slender form. But, even still, this was Danny. A different Danny. 'Do I still love him,' she groaned, unaware of the odd look shot her way. Hesitantly, she reached out and lightly brushed her fingers over his wounded cheek, feeling her gut wrench as the halfa smiled and leaned in to the touch. "No…I can't love him! He's not Danny!"

Danny frowned, and Sam then realized what she had done. **"Oh, I'm not? The who am I?" **

"I--I didn't mean--you-" she shook her head, tears burning in her eyes as her cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

"**Hate to break it to you, Sammy, but I am Danny. I guess you could say I'm the little devil that always sat on his shoulder, except this time the devil took over for good." **His eyes suddenly narrowed, the irises glowing a manic red and he reached towards her and grabbed her wrist. The pale fingers brushed his lips as he jerked the hand to his mouth. **"Maybe I should show you what wicked little thoughts were always popping up in your innocent Danny's little head, in my head..." **he purred.

"Mmm...no, wait, this...this is wrong! Danny, please...stop," she pressed her free hand to his chest, trying to push the boy away.

"**No," **he growled, his voice muffled and yet utterly enticing.

His teeth nipped the meaty flesh of her hand, and that was the end of the line for her. "Danny, stop!" Sam gave him a rough shove, but she wasn't expecting to slide on the silk. Yelping, Sam went tumbling over the edge of the bed, letting out an "oof" when she hit the floor, feeling the hard wood bruise her already aching sides.

"**That had to hurt." **Danny peered over the edge, his leering smile and ruby eyes definitely not a sight for sore eyes for the goth. **"You should be more careful, Sammy." **

"Wha...you jerk! It was your fault," she screamed at him. "And don't call me that!"

"**But I thought you said that I was the only one who could call you that," **he smirked.

Sam growled at him, her pride taking the final blow. Grabbing the silk sheet, she tugged the sheet and dragged the boy off the bed. But, her plan didn't go the way she wanted, for Danny fell off the mattress and promptly fell on top of her, his head smacking against her chest and legs entwining with hers.

"**Well, this is an interesting position." **Danny leaned up on his elbows, grinning down at the angry goth.

"Get off…" Sam snapped. He shook his head and instead sat up so that he was straddling her with his long legs, his hands reaching down and pinning her wrists to the floor. Immediately Sam started to squirm beneath him, but the teen was pressed firmly against the floor.

"**You know, I don't think I will. I'm pretty comfy where I'm at." **Danny chuckled, leaning down so that his face was less than a few inches from hers. **"Besides, I like being the one on top." **In a split second his expression shifted from humor to a mix of anger and lust. Sam couldn't help but whimper when Danny pressed his warm lips against the hollow of her throat, his fangs scraping dangerously across her tender skin.

'Wait…how do I know this isn't a trick? What if he--he's just using me!" She frantically tried to escape the halfa's touch. "No--you--no! You're lying! This--you're trying to trick me!"

Danny's eyes erupted into glowing pits of red fire, his mouth twisting into a sarcastic, angry leer. **"Oh, is that what you think? Do you really believe that, or are you deliberately trying to delude yourself?"**

"Danny…" Sam whispered, but Danny pulled away and climbed off of her, his gloved hands grabbing one of the decorative bed posts and nearly snapping the hard mahogany. "Danny." She sat up and reached out a hand, her soft fingers gently tracing the contours of his face. 'I hurt him….he's trying to hide it, but I hurt him.' It seemed so out of character for this new Danny that she didn't want to believe it, but the sarcasm, the barbed words. It all made sense. "Danny, please, look at me."

"**What?" **He snapped at her, though he did turn his face a degree towards hers.

Her face wildly blushing, Sam stumbled for the words she wanted to say. "I---I," they wouldn't come out. Shaking her head, she tried again. "Danny, I--I'm

A pair of firm lips out of nowhere slammed down on hers, a hand reaching up to tangle in the girl's shiny black tresses. Sam, wide eyed and shocked, felt her eyes fluttering closed as she practically fell into Danny's waiting arms. The warmth from his hands seeped through her tank top, the heat a pleasant change to the chill that had settled over her flesh.

A strangled hiss of pleasure fell from Danny's lips, his tongue lightly brushing the corner of the girl's mouth. **"Apology accepted…" **he murmured, pulling away quick enough to catch Sam blink, her purple orbs glazed and lips colored a soft rosy pink that was visible even under the remaining lipstick. Danny wiped a hand across his lips, chuckling lightly at the faint purple residue on his gloves.

"Hu...um...wow."

"**Man, if that's what it takes for you to let me kiss you, the remind me to make you guilty more often! But, as much as I'd love to continue, you should probably take a bath and get ready for bed." **

Sam seemed to remember that they were sitting in an unknown room, and it was with a cold frown that she glanced around the darkly decorated bedroom. "And you expect me to do this in a stranger's house? Just how did you--"

"**Relax. The owners of this lovely home were kind enough to depart on a short vacation while we're here," **Danny smirked, rubbing two of his fingers together, an impish gleam in his eyes.

"And what's that supposed to mean, Da--" a finger was pressed to her lips, Danny's smirk growing as he shook his head.

"**Shhh...I'll explain everything later. For now, just do as I say, for once in your life." **He nodded towards an open door standing in the corner.** "I'll check in on you later. I'm gonna go look into finding something to eat." **

Sam, her eyes carrying a suspicious gleam, frowned and started the trek towards the bathroom.

"**And Sam?" **The goth stopped dead in her tracks, glancing at him over her shoulder in time to see the malicious smile uncurling on his lips. **"This doesn't change anything. Try to remember what I am…" **

For a second the two simply stared at one another, but then the goth's eyes widened as the full impact of his words hit her. Tears glittering in her amethyst eyes, Sam nodded and slowly shut the bathroom door, a single tear rolling down her pale cheek.

**End of Chapter 8**


	9. Chapter 9

Sam sank into the steaming recesses of the porcelain tub, the heated water refreshing against her aching muscles. She grabbed the sponge sitting on the tub's rim and dunked it into the water, the scent of vanilla heavy in the air as she lightly brushed the loofa down her arms and legs, the soapy foam and bubbles dripping down her skin.

"**Having fun?"**

Sam's scream echoed and rang off the black and white tiled whiles, and the sound of splashing and a meaty SLAP quickly followed. "Danny, what the hell are you doing**inhere**?!"

"**I just thought I'd check and see how my precious Sammy was doing,** the halfa scowled, rubbing his wounded cheek and kneeling down beside the tub. **"Apparently you're doing well…" **he smirked, his gaze traveling up and down her bubble shrouded form.

"Hey!" Sam immediately crossed her arms over her chest and sunk deeper into the tub, her chin touching and sending ripples across water. "Get out," she snapped, her hand raised warningly.

"**Why would I wanna do that? I'm enjoying the view," **Danny winked. **"And besides…" hi**s voice turned icy cold, eyes hardening to resemble stones of frozen blood. **"I'm tired of getting slapped and not being treated with the respect I deserve." **

Sam cried out as he lashed out and grabbed her wrist, her horror stricken face paling under Danny's murderous stare. **"Time to pay the piper, Sam." **His hand exploded in red ecto-energy. A long piercing scream erupted from her mouth, her fear ridden eyes widening as the ectoplasm burned into her skin. Blood started to drip down her arm in speedy rivulets, the liquid falling into the tub and staining the water a cloudy red. A few drops landed on Danny's exposed fingers, and Sam felt her eyes travel up his arm and land on his face, his malicious, hate tinted eyes.

"Wha...why…" she whispered, pain cracking her voice, and his fingers tightened around her bleeding wrist.

"**You've been a bad girl, Sammy...call this judgment day." **Danny flashed her a cold smile and slowly leaned towards her, his fangs bared and getting closer...closer...and closer

"AHHHHH!"

Sam jolted up from the bath, her hair flying and sending shimmering spots of water through the air. Her breathing ragged and eyes wild, she let out another scream as she stumbled and nearly went sprawling over the tub's edge. "What the...what happened," she panted. Glancing down at the water, her eyes widened when she saw the opaque liquid, the light wisps of steam rising off the water. No blood or gore dripped from her wrist, and no blood was mixed with the water. Everything was as it had been.

"Wow...did I dream that…?" Sam breathed, a light tremble running down her spine. "It was so real…"

"**SAM!" **The bathroom door slammed open, and Sam let out a shrill scream as Danny burst through the open doorway, his red eyes hastily sweeping the interior. **"I heard screaming, are you," **he cut off, his jaw dropping as his gaze met a very naked and angry Sam. **"Umm…" **Danny flashed a fanged grin as he took several steps into the room, his eyes never once leaving the goth's. **"I thought you might be in trouble, but I guess that's not the case," **he chuckled lightly.

Sam frowned, but after a second glanced down and

"AUGHHHHHH!"

Danny snickered at her horrified expression, and he watched with a smirk as she scrambled to grab the towel laying on the floor by the tub. Sam quickly wrapped the large-and thankfully black-towel around her chest and upper hips, her expression frozen in a look of outrage and shock.

'This is just great,' she muttered, shooting the quietly chuckling halfa a death glare; he was nonchalantly leaning against the wall, his fanged smile wide and red eyes sparkling. 'I can't believe he saw me!' Sam stepped out of the bath, but she wasn't counting on the slick floor and slipped the second her foot touched the tile.

"**Careful there." **A strong pair of hands caught her under the arms, and Sam couldn't even catch a breath before she was whisked up into waiting arms. Cradling her bridal style, Sam was forced to stare straight up into the halfa's face, his red eyes boring intently into hers. **"And the reversed hero saves the damsel in distress. What's my prize…" **he winked at her.

"Don't make me slap you."

Danny made a pout, his eyes widening like a puppy dog's. **"You wound me Sam," **he sighed, but carried her out the doorway and set her on her feet. **"So, care to explain why you were screaming like a banshee?" **

He blinked at the sudden shadow that casted itself over her face, the girl's purple eyes narrowing and lips curving into a steadfast frown. "I don't want to talk about it." Sam turned her face away from his prying eyes, a hand reaching out to touch a smooth stone wall. "It was just a bad dream," she whispered, more to herself than him. With a shaky sigh, she sat down on the bed, her fingers lightly tracing the skin of her right wrist, the wrist that Danny had brutally maimed in the dream.

"**A bad dream about…?" **Sam looked away as Danny sat down beside her, pulling her knees up to her chest. **"What was it about?" **Danny gently grabbed her chin and turned her face back towards his, his gaze intent and unflinching from hers. **"Sam. Was it about me?" **He immediately recognizing the guilty and uneasy way she bit down on her lip. He'd done it all too often in the past, mostly when being faced by his parents when he was caught sneaking in late.

"**It was, wasn't it?" **Danny pulled his hand away and instead reached for her wrist. Sam watched him pry away her fingers and bring the wrist up to his lips, his smile sincere and a sight for sore eyes. **"It must've been pretty bad for you to wake up crying," **he murmured, gently kissing the skin that had been burnt and charred in her dream.

Sam could only manage a short nod. Her breath caught and eyes fluttered, her frown disappearing as delicate shivers raced down her spine.

Danny slowly kissed his way down her arm, his lips gliding onto the base of her palm. Smirking, he lightly bit the smooth flesh, his fangs just barely nicking and not hard enough to draw blood. Sensing her gaze, he trailed his lips farther down, kissing the tip of her index finger before letting it slid past his lips. Sam gasped as her fingertip hit one of his fangs, and she shuddered as she felt it sink into her flesh, drawing a bead of blood that Danny eagerly licked away.

"Danny, what're---what are you doing," she tried to keep herself calm, but his tongue was doing sinful things to her finger. A tremor entered her voice, but she couldn't stop it. "Danny...I want to--to ask you something." Sam felt his lips pause, his tongue moving back to lick her fingertip.

"**Ask away…" **he pulled her hand back, holding it in his gloved hand as he eyed her with a stony, suspicious stare that hardened his bloody eyes.

"A--about what you said earlier. Danny, what exactly are you planning on doing," she frowned, her resolve returning. "You act like you want me to trust you, but how can I knowing that you could easily turn on me? You're evil, you admitted that yourself!" At that point, she couldn't stop herself. She'd been planning on edging into the topic, but her temper was too out of control to do that.

"**Yeah, I did. What exactly is your point?" **

He was getting angry; Sam could hear the edge coloring his voice. "My experience with evil guys has taught me one thing. They can't be trusted!"

She snapped her hand away, an angry glint entering her purple irises. "What makes you any special? You're not the Danny that I know. He never would've done the things that you've done over the past two days," she scowled at him, but he didn't look in the least bit ashamed. Then again, why would he?

"**Mhmm. So, you're trying to tell me that the Danny you know hasn't done anything bad?"**

"…no, that's not"

Danny held up a hand, the cold look on his face eerily calm. **"You know, I'd have to disagree. Shall I name a few instances for you?" **He held up a finger, his dark eyes lowering. **"I--well, perhaps he would be more appropriate, since you insist upon differentiating us. He**** cheated on the CAT, and nearly got you and everybody else killed."**

"Yeah, but Danny returned the test answers! Did you forget that little fact," Sam snapped.

"**And why did he do that? Because he knew what the future would become if he didn't." **Danny smirked, raising another finger. **"There was the little incident of him spying on you and Gregor. Jealousy can do many things to a guy, and it made him invade your privacy without your knowledge or permission."**

Sam had to flinch at that memory; she'd been really mad at Danny for that one, although he did turn out to be right in the end.

"**Plus, we can't forget how your innocent best friend has used his powers for personal gain, not for the benefit of others. Which, as I recall, is what he promised to use them for. Not for sneaking out of detention or overshadowing his parents to get ungrounded."**

"……you di--he did that?" Sam paled, but her fiery spirit couldn't be so easily quenched. "Well, so what? Just because he did all those things doesn't mean that he was a bad person! You're different! You kill people without a second thought! You sent your own parents to the hospital! You--"

"**Technically, since you so adamantly protest against me being your Danny, then those weren't my ****parents. They were his." **He grinned smugly. **"So, care to rectify your statement? Am I or am I not Danny?"**

Sam wanted to grab him by the hair and beat him senseless; he was so damn infuriating! "You're evil! You've told me time and time again that you're his other half, but that--"

"**Which only proves that I am ****Danny. A different Danny, but him nonetheless. I have all his memories, all his emotions…well, all the ones I'm capable of feeling, and I have all his quirks and attitude. The latter being a tad more ruthless, I'll admit, but I digress." **Danny leaned forward and grabbed her chin, jerking her face less than an inch away from his. **"I may be a bit smarter and more maniacal, but I…am….Danny."**

Searching the ruby gaze in front of her, Sam was startled to see the truth swirling in his dark irises. Truth, and another emotion that she'd never really noticed before, and couldn't discern. "Fine. You're Danny." Jerking her face away, Sam laid a hand on his arm and whispered, "But how could I trust you? How do I know you won't hurt me? You did in my dre," she cut off, but her words had obviously already registered in Danny's mind. The snowy haired halfa stared at her for a few seconds, his bloody eyes narrowing and a tight smile settling on his lips.

"**How can you know I won't hurt you? That should be obvious, considering how many damn times I've said it," **he growled, his voice dangerously soft. Sam's heart froze under his penetrating stare, her violet eyes spellbound and unmoving from his gaze. **"Most evil guys don't have someone that keeps them sane, but I do." **

"But--you--"

"**I would never betray you. I can't." **Danny smirked, and in a flash of red he had an arm wrapped around her waist, the other tangling in her hair. **"And as for hurting you, have I ever really done that?"**

"Well, you did do this lovely number to my shoulder," Sam rubbed a hand over the two fangs marks on her right shoulder, and Danny shrugged.

"**Yeah, but that was to make a point. Other than that, have I intentionally hurt you?" **He grinned at the dumbfounded look that crossed her face, the answer to his question already evident. **"No, I haven't. Sam, you can trust me, because I'm never going to betray you. I can't." **Danny let a loving smile replace his smirk, eyes softening from their former stone-like look. **"I love you too much to do that." **

Sam's breath hitched, and with a low cry she grabbed his hand, purple eyes growing wide. "Danny, what're you saying?! Do you--do you really mean that?"

Instead of the arrogant reply she'd been expecting, Sam was fully surprised when he merely smiled enigmatically, the softness in his red eyes dulling the hue to a deep garnet. For once, she wasn't scared by those eyes. Those eyes, which she'd first seen coming out of the darkness, would have haunted her dreams, if not for words that had just come from the boy she loved with all her heart….even if she refused to admit it.

Yawning, Danny brushed a hand over her cheek and grinned. **"Well, I'm tired. I think I'll go to bed, since I doubt that either one of us is really hungry." **Stunned, Sam watched him climb off the bed and go over to a bureau standing in the corner. From it he withdrew a long black nightgown and a pair of black sleeping pants, and Sam, though dumbfounded, caught the warm gown as Danny tossed it to her. **"I didn't think you'd wanna sleep in your clothes," **he shrugged at her expression, but Sam caught the self satisfied smirk that appeared on his face.

"Oh...thanks Danny, I guess, but--uhh? Ok, I'm officially confused," she murmured. "I thought you were--umm--you said." Sam threw her hands up and groaned. "Oh, forget it! Let's just go to sleep."

Danny gave another chuckle and a small shrug and then, in a flash of red light, transformed back into his human self. Sam took in his black hair with white tips, red eyes, the still sharp canines and the plain black t-shirt and jeans clothing his form. "Going goth?"

"**I guess you could say that, at least fashion wise," **he grinned, and he reached for the hem of his t-shirt.

"Hey, what're you doing?!"

Danny nearly jumped at Sam's startled cry, his eyes narrowing curiously at her shocked expression. **"What does it look like? I'm getting changed." **The goth blushed a pale rose pink, and Danny let out a short sigh. **"Oh please, don't tell me you're embarrassed," **he smirked.

"No! Of course not!"

"**Good…" **Danny threw off his shirt at blinding speed, and Sam let out a yelp as she was left staring at his pale and incredibly well built chest.

'Oh wow...man, he must work out,' she thought, her eyes fixated on the muscles standing proudly under a layer of pale skin. An impressive six pack was the dominating feature of his lower chest, his muscles evident yet not overpowering. As Danny moved Sam felt her eyes traveling upward, the muscles in his arms rippling and nearly making the goth drool.

Danny saw her staring out of the corner of his eye and, his face frozen in a wicked smirk, stretched his arms upward in a languid movement. **"You planning on staring at me all day," **he chuckled lowly, and Sam immediately dropped her gaze to the floor, the blush intensifying to the color of cherries.

"Go jump off a cliff." In a huff she walked into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her, Danny's laughter following her through the flimsy wood and echoing in her ears. Sam quickly tugged off her clothes and, nearly stumbling in the process, managed to pull the nightgown over her head, the long sheath tumbling across her form and falling modestly to the floor. "Well, at least it's black, and comfy." Sam did a quick twirl in the soft black gown, her smile reappearing as she ran her fingers over the soft material. 'And its decent,' she added mentally.

Rolling her eyes, Sam slowly pried open the bathroom door. Danny was leaning against one of the bed posts, the smirk still plastered on his lips. His black pants hung low on his hips, and she could easily imagine the muscular limbs hiding beneath the fabric. Glancing up, Sam drank in his pale torso, and she was struck with a longing to caress the smooth muscles that studded his chest. Her gaze shifted to his face, and she blushingly admired the alabaster features. Shoulder length hair fell messily around his handsome face, the white tips brushing his chin, and shrouded long strand fell over his right eye, but she could see that the other was crinkled in amusement.

"**I'll pass on the whole 'jumping off a cliff' thing, unless I'm in ghost form," **he glanced up at her, his one visible eye narrowing in what Sam recognized as scrutiny. **"Suits you."**

"Huh?" Sam paused at that, and Danny nodded to her nightgown. The blush instantly reappeared on her cheeks, the red stain a dark contrast to her pale skin.

"**Well, you can stand there gawking at me the whole night if you want, but I'm going to bed." **

Sam watched him climb into the red silk strewn bed and lean back against the fluffy pillows, a dark look quickly emerging on her face. "And where exactly am I supposed to sleep?"

Danny grinned and patted the space beside him, a wicked glint coloring his eyes.

Sam felt her jaw drop in an almost comical fashion as she stared at him, her eyes wide and hands clenching into fists. "No way! Uhuh, nope, sorry, not happening!"

"**Aww, come on Sammy! I promise to play nice," **Danny gave her an innocent smile, patting the space beside him. His expression didn't waver at the dark scowl Sam shot him, and instead he simply relaxed against the velvet pillows, his hands grabbing the warm red coverlet and tugging it up to his waist. Sam, teeth gnawing into her lower lip, glanced hesitantly from him to the floor. **"Sam." **She glanced up and met his gaze. **"I won't hurt you. Promise," **he smiled a gentle grin, one that nearly made the goth collapse to the floor weak kneed.

"….You promise not to try anything?"

Danny beamed at her, his smile infectious and bringing a small grin to her own face. With a short sigh she climbed into the massive bed and laid down beside the halfa. Rolling over so that she was lying on her side facing him, she gave Danny the biggest smile he swore he'd ever seen on her face and leaned over and brushed a light kiss across his cheek. "Night Danny."

"**Night Sam." **He smiled cheekily and gently slipped an arm underneath her light form, eyes practically glowing as he pulled her up against his chest. In a quick move he removed his arm from under her and draped the other one over her chest, his fingers twisting and playing with her silken black hair.

"Hey, I thought you said you weren't going to try anything," she teased, and the halfa grinned.

"**I lied."**

Sam mockingly glared at him, but her smile was peaceful as she slowly drifted off, her eyes fluttering close. Danny watched her snuggle up against him and place a hand against the smooth expanse of his chest, his own eyes falling closed as he curled his fingers in her hair and gently kissed her forehead.

"**Sweet dreams, Sam."**

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Pale light filtered into the room from the massive windows shrouded with thin silk curtains, the silk looking more like waves of blood. The red hued light fell on the two sleeping figures lying on the bed, illuminating their black hair and pale skin with bloody streaks.

Sam, her expression peaceful and hair lightly tussled around her face, let out a yawn as she pressed herself up against Danny's chest. One of her arms was draped over his side, her hand resting in the small of his back.

Danny released a soft sigh and shifted the arm draped over Sam's own waist, his hand curling in the goth's long black locks and lips curved in a faint smile. **"Mmm…" **the halfa's eyes crept open inch by inch, the red orbs even brighter in the pale light. Danny smirked as he glanced over at the girl spooned up against him, and in a swift movement pushed himself up and off the bed, not even disturbing the sleeping girl.

The red rings appeared around his waist and transformed his plain sleeping pants into the black pants, red shirt, and leather jacket of his costume. Black hair turned white and fell messily around his pale face, his fangs sliding down to graze his lips.

Without a word, he turned intangible and flew through the wall, his expression changing to form a stubborn frown as he re-emerged in the sky outside. Bright golden sunlight was spreading across the horizon and illuminating the sky with orange, red, and pink streaks, the light turning Danny's hair a pale gold. The halfa didn't stop to admire the beautiful scenery, however, and through the clouds he soared, the breeze ruffling his hair and whipping the hem of his coat around his transformed ghostly tail.

For over an hour Danny flew like this, his bloody eyes silently searching the landscape below. Finally his eyes narrowed and his face assumed its trademark smirk. Had it not been morning, a normal person would have been shocked to see a demonic looking ghost dive-bombing out of the sky towards the ground. But it was morning, so nobody saw the teen drop down and set foot on walkway in front of a massive building, his gaze hard as he stared up at the structure.

"**About damn time," **he muttered darkly, and he quickly turned intangible and phased through the building's front door. Danny ignored the people walking to and fro through the halls and instead walked up to a desk set into the wall. No one noticed him turn tangible and grab the clipboard lying on the desktop, his eyes hastily scanning the papers clipped in a sheaf on the board. **"Heh...you think they'd hide this sort of thing, especially with what happened." **Danny tossed the clipboard back onto the desk and turned invisible, his eyes scanning the halls as he quietly walked across the polished tiles. The only notice anyone gave to his presence was to shiver slightly as he passed by, his ghostly aura emitting a bone freezing chill.

He floated down the hall and made a sharp left, his smirk widening as his gaze fell on the door at the hall's end on the right-hand side. **"Here we are..." **Danny chuckled, turning visible and reaching out to grasp the handle. The door swung open to reveal a brightly lit room, and he winced as the piercing white light hit his eyes. **"Damn, why do they keep it so bright in here," **he snapped softly, shutting the door behind him with a swift kick.

Beepbeepbeep

The halfa glanced at the various monitors lined up against the right wall, the machines beeping, whirring, and glowing with tiny red lights. Danny barely paid them any mind, instead strolling over to the two double windows set into the far wall. He peered outside at the scraggly trees and different paved walkways, his smirk fading and replaced with a stony frown. **"You know, this is all your fault…" **Danny whispered, his voice radiating hatred and eyes glowing a fierce ruby red, the same shade as the streaks painting the sky. **"You should have just minded your own damn business. I mean, look what happened." **He whirled around in a flurry of gleaming leather, his teeth bared in an wolf-like leer. **"I wonder how it would feel, knowing that your only son was turned into a monster by your very hands?"**

BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP

"**Damn, that is really annoying," **he spat. Shooting a beam of ectoplasm out of his fingers, Danny sneered as the machines were reduced to a pile of burning, twisted pieces of metal, a dull thud sounding as they fell to the floor. **"Well fuck, somebody probably heard that. Now look what you made me do," **he scowled, but a touch of humor entered his voice. **"You know, it's kind of ironic. You wanted to help me, to save me from the darkness. And instead you created me****." **With a low sigh, Danny leaned against a window and stared out at the golden landscape. **"You know, I didn't think I'd ever turn evil again. I mean, there really was no way to see this coming, so I couldn't have known, but…." **he shook his head. **"I suppose it doesn't matter. I'm evil now, and I've never felt better in my entire life. I hold more power now than I ever thought possible, and I have the girl I love by my side. I--"**

"Room 512! The patients have flat lined!"

Danny gave the door a quick glance, automatically turning invisible just as two doctors came streaming into the room, panicked looks on their faces.

"What happened here," one of them cried, running to the destroyed machines standing against the wall.

"I don't know, but that explains why our machines said these two were flat lining," the other said, an evident sense of relief coloring his words. Both doctors turned to the two patients lying side by side in the beds, neither paying any attention to the red eyed phantom that emerged from thin air and stood in the corner, quietly observing. "We better call an orderly and get all new equipment in here." The two walked out of the room.

"**Idiots." **Danny pushed away from the wall, an arrogant sneer on his face. He walked over to the two beds and stared coldly down at the two unconscious figures laying on the starchy white sheets, his eyes like chips of frozen blood. **"You two made me what I am...you made me a half ghost, and then you turned me into the very enemy you always feared. Some parents," **he snorted, but his eyes narrowed as he let out a short chuckle. **"I suppose out of respect for our past I should let you live...after all, I have you to thank for being this way. For being the best I could be."**

Utter silence fell like a blanket across the room, the quiet broken only by the faint breathing of all three occupants. Danny stared at the helpless patients with his icy eyes, and finally he pushed away from the beds and started back towards the window. He pushed open one of the double windows and climbed onto the sill, gloved hands tightly clenching the frame. **"I am no longer your son...next time I see you, I won't show mercy."**

Danny flew out into the open air and soared away from the Amity Park Hospital at top speed. The two lying in their beds unconscious were blissfully unaware that the monster they created had been in their room. They stayed asleep, oblivious to how close they had come to death, and just how twisted their one and only son had truly become.

**End of Chapter 9**


	10. Chapter 10

"Dude, we are so totally screwed!"

Seeing as how Vlad's castle had been destroyed, the merry quartet had seen no other option than to return to FentonWorks, much to the displeasure of a certain two someone's. They were seated around the kitchen table. Well, Jazz and Tucker were sitting, since Jazz's side was hurting and Tucker was just lazy, but Dan and Plasmius were standing beside the counter, sporting bandages and looking the worse for wear. Vlad had transformed into his ghost half in an attempt to help his wounds heal, but Dan was stuck healing all on his own.

"Not that I approve of your atrocious language, but you are correct," Vlad frowned, his now red eyes narrowed under thick black brows. "We are, in fact, in way over our heads. From what he told us," he gestured towards Dan, and the ghost shot him a deadly glare,

"Daniel is gaining control of his powers at an alarming rate. He defeated us both, the most powerful enemies he's ever faced. And now that he has Samantha, who knows what he's going to do next."

"Well, that should be obvious. If I know my younger half, he's going to try and conquer Amity Park...which is why it's kind of stupid to be here, considering he could attack at any time," Dan smirked.

Jazz scowled at him, her arms crossed angrily across her chest. "Well, this is the only place we could go. Besides, my brother's not like you! Even if he is evil, he still has some sense of human emotion!"

"Hmph, says you." Dan rolled his eyes. "He may still have his human half, but that doesn't make him any less dangerous than myself. In case you forgot, Danny left us in that castle to die. Now, you try and tell me that he isn't like me," he snapped at her. "If anything, he's more evil than I am. He'll attack us, and he'll enjoy the sheer thrill of it. Revenge will just be the icing on the cake for him."

A bone chilling silence enveloped the room, and Tucker shivered as Dan passed his burning red gaze over him. Vlad eased the grip he was holding on his ribs, which had been hurt when he was unceremoniously tossed against the wall.

"The only question is...what do we do now? From what Jasmine has told us, the lab downstairs is totally destroyed. We'll need a fully functioning lab if we even want a chance of creating a cure to save Daniel."

"And there's nobody else that has a lab with the kind of equipment we would need to make more Ecto-Reverso," Dan added, a dark frown etched on his blue face. "The only lab that could even be considered is the GIW's."

"GIW?" Tucker stared at the black and white clad ghost curiously, but he let out a yelp as a gloved hand reached out and smacked the back of his head. "Ow! What was that for," he yelped.

"For being incredibly stupid. The Guys In White, you moron. Those guys may be incompetent fools, but they do have excellent equipment. But they're out of the picture, seeing as how me and the cheesehead here," he motioned to Vlad, ignoring the glare on his face, "aren't exactly welcome."

"So what do we do?" Tucker whispered. The four all stared at each other, their eyes searching each others face, looking for answers.

"Clockwork." Everyone glanced at Jazz, their expressions that of shock. "Clockwork could help us."

"Hell NO!" The table shook and nearly went flying against the wall as Dan slammed his hands down onto the wood and successfully sent a web of cracks skating across the polished surface. "Are you insane? If I even go near Clockwork, he'll find a way to put me back in that prison your precious Daniel trapped me in," he spat, sending a ferocious glare at the redhead, his teeth bared in a fanged sneer. "And you need me if you want to defeat Danny. No, no way in hell are we going to Clockwork!"

"Besides, what would Clockwork do to help us? I mean, the only reason he helped Danny last time was to prevent him from turning into...well," Tucker nodded towards Dan, "him. And why would he even help us anyways? Even if we went back in time or something, how do we know we won't just screw something up?"

"Well, I've never even heard of this _Clockwork, _but, from the way you have reacted, I'd say that he wouldn't be our best bet," Vlad frowned, glancing at Dan. "Besides, we can't have you getting locked up, now can we?"

Dan growled at him, his fists warningly clenching. "I may have told you my charming past history, Plasmius, but you better shut your mouth before I do it for you, permanently."

"Now now, is that any way to talk to me, a fellow comrade? And I suppose that I technicality I could be considered your brother, perhaps even your father, which means I deserve even more respect." Vlad smirked at him, and Dan's eyes flared, ectoplasm glowing around his hands.

"Like hell you are, you screwed up Frootloop!"

"What did you call me?!"

The two ghosts made as if to jump at each other, but Tucker ran between them and held his hands out, separating them. "Look you guys, cut it out! We need to worry about Danny right now. You can fight later!"

"He's right. Plasmius, Dan, please. We need to focus on Danny." Jazz gazed at them pleadingly, and the two scowled at each other before turning away.

Both teenagers breathed a quiet sigh, though their relieved expressions disappeared when Dan glanced their way. "Fine, but we still have a problem. How are we going to return Danny to normal? We need equipment. I mean, I know the cheesehead here could just buy us the stuff we'll need, but we should try and remain inconspicuous, considering Danny thinks we're dead. We can't exactly go prancing around outside," he pointed out, his lips pressed into a stern frown.

Jazz and Tucker exchanged thoughtful stares, but slowly a smirk spread out across the redhead's face, a wicked glint entering her aqua eyes.

"Who says that **you **have to?"

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"DANIEL JAMES FENTON, WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU?! GET YOUR SORRY ASS DOWN HERE!"

Sam could feel her throat burning and begging for a rest, but she continued on screaming at the top of her lungs.

"DANNY! I'M GONNA RIP YOU APART WHEN I FIND YOU! HOW DARE YOU KEEP ME LOCKED UP IN HERE ALL DAY AND"

"**Well, soooorry...I had some business to take care of. Nice to see you missed me," **the voice appeared right by Sam's ear, and the goth nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Aggh, you jerk! Don't sneak up on me like that!" She turned around and slammed her fist into a shoulder, a shoulder that was currently floating right in front of her. Sam glared at the smirking face, ignoring the fact that Danny was floating on his stomach in midair. "Where were you? I thought you'd left me here! You better be glad that you're my best friend, 'cause you wouldn't have to worry about changing back to human form if you weren't!"

Danny stared at her amusedly, eyes crinkled with hidden laughter. With a chuckle, he rolled over and floated on his back. **"Like I said, I had some business to take care of. No worries Sammy, I would never leave you…" **he grinned. **"And I hope I'm a little bit more to you than just a friend."**

"Haven't I told you not to call me Sammy?!"

"**Yes...I just choose to ignore you." **

"Danny! Quit it!"

"**You know, I didn't hear you deny the whole 'more than a friend' bit." **

Sam let out a frustrated scream, her fingers itching to latch onto Danny's neck. "Aghh, would you leave me alone?!"

"**Weren't you just yelling at me to get my sorry ass down here," **he chuckled. "**Besides, where'd be the fun in that? You're way too easy to tease." **Danny blew her a kiss, and, before Sam could even blink, went invisible and disappeared from her sight.

"Hey, what the...Danny!" A low growl escaped her lips, and, with a ferocious gleam in her eyes, she started grabbing at the air. "Danny, turn visible right now!" Sam paused for several seconds, but only silence met her ears. "DANNY!"

"**Yes?" **

"AGGGGHHHHHHHH!!"

Danny's low chuckle was easily covered by the loud and panicked scream that bounced off the stone walls, a scream that broke from Sam's lips as she stumbled and went tumbling to the floor. Her burning glare flew upward to the hybrid, who, once again, was floating in the air. "You...you jerk! How could you…" she gasped, a hand pressed against the front of her chest. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"**Aww, poor little Sammy can't take a joke." **He floated down to the floor and gave another small chuckle, his cherry red eyes gleaming maliciously. **"Come on Sam, have a sense of humor."**

"You want me to have a sense of humor?! How's this for humor!?"

**CRASH!!**

Danny ducked and a large, and probably really expensive, vase went crashing into the wall directly above his head, the pottery smashing into tiny bits of china and crumbling onto him.

His expression changed to form a dark scowl, and with a growl he lightly shook his head, bits and pieces of the painted china falling to the floor. **"What the hell? Geez Sam, can't you take a little joke," **he snapped, brushing off specks of white dust from the front of his shirt.

"Can't you act your age?!"

"**Oh please, you're just pissed 'cause I left you locked in here for a couple of hours."**

"And I didn't know where you were? What was I supposed to do? Not panic? Not wonder where you'd gone?!"

"**Sam, you're acting like a child," **Danny chided, and the black haired girl's eyes immediately narrowed.

"I'm acting like a child? Are you crazy?!"

"**Mentally, yes, I probably am." **

That was the last straw. Sam took a deep gulp of air before thrusting her hand up towards his face, her face livid as she imagined her palm going

SMACK!

Danny's fingers curled around her wrist and halted her hand, the leather glove smacking against her skin. **"Why do you insist on smacking me? Do you have a fetish with pain or something?" **

Sam glared at him defiantly, and, in a burst of speed, brought her free hand up. Danny felt his head reel to the side as her palm slammed into his cheek, a bloody red handprint stained on his face. But, strong fingers tightened around her captured wrist, the grip bleaching her skin a creamy white.

"**What...the...hell…" **the low snarl resembled that of a raging tiger or wolf, and she felt her jaw drop at the murderous gleam that had entered Danny's glowing red eyes. The halfa brought his head back up, neck popping as he gave it a quick jerk, his cheek still imprinted with the mark she'd left. **"Fine, you wanna play rough?!" **

Danny grabbed her other wrist with his steely grip, and slammed her into the wall, her head smacking against the cold stone. Sam could feel a scream rumbling in the back of her throat, but she quickly choked it back, her gaze never wavering from the pair of animalistic and bloodthirsty orbs that were Danny's eyes.

"**I'll give**__**you **_**rough,"**_ the words washed over her like burning silk, bringing a pink blush to her pale cheeks. Sam held back another pained cry when her arms were roughly pushed above her head, his fingers holding her wrists captive and leaving her hands lying uselessly against the stone.

"Let go! Danny, you bastard, you better let me go right now, or I swear I"

"**You'll what," **Danny let a very Dan-like smile grace his lips, a hint of fang peeking out and gleaming pearly white. **"I don't think you've quite caught on yet...**_**I**_** am in charge, you're not." **

"You are not the boss of me!" Sam kicked out with her legs, but Danny simply pressed his left arm over her wrists and grabbed her upper thigh with his free hand, his fingers warm through the thin cloth of her skirt.

"**I'd have to disagree." **

A short silence passed over the two, and Sam's cheeks burned as she felt the heat from his hand spread a tingling warmth across her thigh. "Umm, Danny?"

"**I think you need to be taught a lesson." **

She shivered when he raked his fingers up her legs, his words dissolving into a low and seductive hiss. Her stomach curled into knots under his stare, a shadow of goose bumps evident on her rapidly paling skin.

"Danny, what're you" she didn't even get to finish the sentence before Danny jammed his lips on hers, his hand hitching her leg up and pinning it against his side. Sam could feel his tongue caress her lower lip, fangs gently scraping against the soft flesh, and couldn't hold back the low moan that parted her lips. Danny slipped his tongue into her mouth and caressed hers, all the while drawing circles on the skin of her lower leg.

"Da...Danny," she groaned, voice muffled underneath his persistent attacks.

"**You wanted it rough…" **he pulled away slightly, a steady growl rumbling in his throat. His normally bloody eyes were now a darker shade of red, the color nearly indistinguishable from the black pupils. Sam gave another little shudder as she felt him bunch the hem of her nightgown in his hand, his fingers pulling the fabric up her leg and leaving it in a rumple of black cloth on her upper thigh. Warm fingers swept down her leg and wrapped around her knee, each one leaving a burning trail on her flesh.

"Danny...please…" Sam whispered, her voice hoarse and nearly catching in her throat.

"**Please what," **Danny placed a searing kiss on the hollow of her neck, a fang lightly pressing and successfully cutting her flesh. A tiny droplet of blood trickled down and landed on his lip, the ruby blood quivering with his every move. Sam squirmed and tried to pull her leg out of his grip, but his hand simply clenched tighter around her knee and held it firmly in place, his fingers like velvet covered steel. **"Please this?" **He brushed his hand farther up her thigh, the leather sliding over her skin as smoothly as fine silk.

Sam felt her eyes falling closed, a breathy sigh passing her lips as his arm swept around her back and wrapped around her waist. "Danny…"

'**Does she even realize how much she's turning me on? Ahh, fuck, I can't do this!"**

Danny quickly drew back and stared at the panting teen before him, both of his hands dropping to lay uselessly by his sides. His eyes were wide and shining with a wild gleam, and with a frown he wiped his mouth, a faint red smear staining the pristine black leather.

"Danny, what…? I thought you--well-"

"**I had to stop. I know you're**__**not ready for that, even if your body wants me. You'd only regret it later," **he turned away, severely hating his damnable conscious that apparently wouldn't go away, even if he was evil.

Sam moved away from the wall and took a hesitant step towards him, her nightgown once again fluttering demurely around her ankles. "Danny...I, I,"

"**What? Spit it out already." **

"I...I mean, I'm," she cut off, her words jumbling together in a useless ramble. What was she trying to say?

"**Sam, it's ok," **he whispered. She didn't move when he brought his hand up and laid it on her right shoulder, his thumb brushing the two pinpricks permanently marring her flesh. **"I'm not happy about it, but I'll give you time...for now. Besides, you don't seem to have any problem with kissing me, not that I blame you. I mean, I am a great at it." **Danny's grin was looking more and more like a smirk to Sam every second, and she held up her hand, palm towards him, a deadly gleam darkening her eyes.

"See this hand? I'm one comment away from smacking you across the…_**mmph!**_" Sam's tirade was cut off as Danny grabbed her by the arms and jammed his lips onto hers. The goth could feel her bones turn to mush, legs feeling more like jelly than skin and bone. Danny eagerly caught her as she collapsed against him, a pale arm wrapping around his neck and her fist clenching in his soft red shirt.

"**I take it you enjoyed that," **he gasped and pulled away, a lock of disheveled hair falling in front of his eye. Sam feigned a glare, a smile twitching the edges of her lips.

"Let me just save you the trouble...well, how couldn't you? I mean, like I said, I am a great kisser, and you were bound to like it." She struck a pose, hands on her hips and head held high, her mouth mimicking Danny's infamous smirk with startling ease. "Now who does that sound like?"

"**Heh, not bad. If not for your being a girl, you'd be a better me than...well, me," **he chuckled. Sam blushed as he passed his scrutinizing gaze over her, her eyes lowering to the floor. **"Though, it'd probably be a little awkward if you were a boy," **Danny grinned at her, his low chuckle music to her ears. **"Then again, you'd still be gorgeous, so I'd make an exception. You know, with our good looks, we could model the latest goth fashions," **he struck a runway pose, one hand playing with the snowy strands tumbling around his shoulders, the other laying casually on his hip.

If anybody else did it, they would have looked extremely gay. But it was Danny, and he didn't look the least bit gay to Sam. "Uhuh...you keep telling yourself that," Sam smirked at him, and the boy groaned, jabbing a hand against his chest.

"**Aww, Sam, you break my heart," **Danny feigned a hurt expression, but the glimmer in his eyes gave away his amusement. **"But on the subject of goth fashion…" **

Danny walked over to the closet and tugged open the door, his hand reaching inside and withdrawing a familiar dress from its confines. A black corset and a glittering skirt made of two shades of silky purple, Sam instantly recognized the dress. It was the one she wore to homecoming, the same night she attacked Paulina in the guise of a giant dragon. She took the gown from him and ran her fingers over the velvet corset and the silk ribbons. "How did you get this? And why"

"**Sam. Just put it on." **Danny smirked and gave her a light push towards the bathroom door. Giving him a curious frown, Sam stumbled into the bathroom and closed the door with a sharp SNAP, and the halfa rolled his eyes when he heard her grumbling behind the door. **"Now I get to wait forever while she dresses," **he grumbled good naturedly.

"Hey! I heard that!"

Danny smirked at the closed door, and with a roll of his eyes he leaned back and relaxed against the wall, one booted foot in front of the other and his arms crossed behind his head. The halfa lazily shut his eyes and let a shroud of white hair fall cover his face, his expression melting into a stoic mask. Several minutes later a soft creaking reached his ears, the sound of cloth whispering across carpet following soon after.

"Well...what do you think?"

He raised his head, red eyes growing wide behind the veil of white hair. **"Uhhhhh...oh wow."** Sam looked even more beautiful than she had at homecoming! The skirt flowed out behind her like butterfly wings, and the corset enhanced her already nice figure, even more so since she had filled out a bit more. Her hair was pulled it up into the same style she'd worn at homecoming, and there was purple shadow dusting her lids. Sam smiled at him, blushing as his eyes slid down her form with obvious approval.

"How do I look?"

"**How do you look? You look amazing." **Danny reached out and grabbed her hand, his smirk playful as he twirled her around and pulled her to him. **"Now, let's get out of here." **

"Huh? Hey wait, what're you doing?!"

His arms swung under her legs and lifted her off the floor, and Sam let out a cry as she found herself cradled in Danny's arms.

She pounded a fist against his chest, but Danny merely shrugged and flashed her a smirk. "Danny, put me down!"

"**Nope. Now, hold on!" **

Sam screamed as she and Danny suddenly went intangible. The halfa flew up through the roof, the bright blue sky and burning sun making her blink and shield her eyes. Sam weakly realized that her regular clothes were left in the house before she screamed as they flew higher into the air, her arms wrapping around his neck and face burying in his shoulder. Heights were one thing, but flying at neck breaking speeds high in the air was a whole other.

"Danny! Where're we going?"

He grinned down at her, his eyes narrowing into thin slits. **"We should get there in about a half hour, if I keep this speed up." **

"GET WHERE?!" Sam was half tempted to slap Danny across his arrogant face, but considering how that turned out last time...

"**Chill Sammy, you'll find out soon enough."**

Sam crossed her arms and gave him a pouty look, her body unconsciously relaxing in his arms. For a few minutes neither teen spoke, but of course that couldn't last.

"Hey, Danny?"

His gaze dropped down and met hers, a brow raised and a curious gleam in his eyes. **"What?" **

Sam could see the coldness settling on his face, his handsome features sharpening and seeming to be made of ice rather than skin and bone. "Never mind."

Her black hair tickled her face as she leaned her head against his chest, the locks rustling in the wind and mingling with Danny's own white and black hair. The wind made the silk of her dress flutter around the two like butterfly wings, the sunlight shining down and shooting golden glints amongst the purple and black cloth. Sam could feel her eyes fluttering closed, but she resisted and managed to keep her purple orbs open a crack, wide enough to see the trees and roads passing below. She stayed that way for so long she lost sense of time; it seemed suspended, unmoving. It could have been an hour, it could've been a few minutes. She couldn't tell.

Suddenly, a large white sign emerged on the horizon's edge, the bright blue letters forming a recognizable slogan that made her heart race.

"Amity Park…" she choked out, her voice no higher than a low whisper. Sam drew her gaze up to Danny's, his glowing eyes making her want to cringe; they were like fire and ice, the cherry color so bright it nearly seemed to be pooling out of the orbs.

"**Home sweet home." **

**End of Chapter 10**


	11. Chapter 11

"**Home sweet home."**

His eyes were like slabs of blood tainted ice, and their cold chill sent a race of shivers down her spine. And his smile...it was a twisted parody of his former smirk, a leer that was both bloodthirsty and lustful.

"Danny, wha--what're we doing here?"

He glanced at her, and Sam saw the answer in his bloodthirsty eyes. 'Remember what he said? This doesn't change anything?' The memory was burned into her mind for all eternity. His voice had been so heartless, so cruel. Even Dan couldn't manifest the same cruelty and frigidness.

"**Why ask a question you already know the answer to," **Danny murmured, his soft voice dangerously cool. **"I've come home, and it's time to show the world just how powerful I've become."**

"How powerful--Danny, what're you planning? I don't--"

"**Amity Park will fall to its knees before me and treat me with the respect I deserve. And you should remember what I told you before." **His features hardened, almost as if the pale skin was molded from colored glass, and his eyes narrowed into a preditorial glare.

"This doesn't change anything…" Sam whispered.

Danny gave her a cold smile, his red eyes glimmering. **"Nothing you can say or do will make me change my mind. I am evil, and the fact of whether you accept it or not's up to you. But don't mislead yourself," **he turned away, staring out at the city.** "Amity Park will fall by my hand, and then I will rule as king, with you by my side."**

"No."

Smirking, he shook his head and glanced at her. **"No?"**

"No. That's not going to happen. I won't let it."

"**You won't let it happen?" **Danny chuckled and floated down to the ground, setting her gently down onto her feet and pushing her aside. **"I won't let you stop me. I love you, but I'm not against force to make you cooperate…" **red ectoplasm started to glow around his hands, and Sam nearly cried out when he held a glowing hand up, the pale fingers clenching into a glowing fist. **"And believe me, you'd be begging for forgiveness in the end. Now, will you cooperate?" **

"Cooperate? How could I cooperate with something like this?!"

"**How could you not, when you know very well that I have no qualms about hurting anybody?" **

That broke her out of her trail of thought. Sam felt tears trickling down her cheeks as his words took full control in her head, the coldness behind them painfully real. "You, you can't mean that...Danny, please, I"

"**Don't underestimate me, Sam…" **he murmured. **"You of all people should know how ruthless I can be. I'll do whatever it takes to get your cooperation, even if it means knocking off a few worthless civilians." **

"Worthless...Danny, how can you say that?! Sam grabbed his arm and whirled him around, forcing herself to gaze into the cruel red eyes that held nothing but rage and a hungry gleam. "No, I won't! I won't help you!"

"**You won't?" **A dark shadow entered his voice, and it made her eyes widen in fright when he smirked at her, his canines gleaming. **"Sam...poor, sweet, mislead Sam. Did you think I was joking? If the need arose, I'd be all too happy to eliminate a few bystanders," **his hand crept up and rested against her neck, the ectoplasm slipping down so that it avoided her skin. **"Stop resisting the inevitable, Sam, and life will be a whole lot easier for the both us."**

Sam felt the tears stinging her eyes, but she held them back as the hand cupped her face, the pallid fingers gently grasping her chin.

"**Sam." **She blinked; his eyes were burning into hers, so close that it was like the red glow was going to melt into her own. **"It'd be better for you to agree. I don't want to have to restrain you," **he whispered breathily, and Sam released a long sigh as his other hand gently started to caress the side of her hip, his fingers twisting the delicate silk and almost tearing it. **"Please don't fight me…"**

"Danny, I...I can't let you hurt innocent people. It'd be wrong!"

"**I won't have to hurt them if you agree to cooperate," **his lips fell to brush the side of her neck, a fang lightly nipping the tender skin. **"Sam…just say you won't fight me. I'll spare the beloved people if you agree to not fight me."**

Sam heard the persuasive tone in his words, but she heard the ring of truth as well. Danny was evil, manipulative, and as cunning as he was handsome, but he was telling the truth. "...ok." He jerked away and stared at her, a smirk of surprise and triumph on his face. "Only if you promise not to hurt the people," Sam warned, tugging away from his gentle touch. "That's the only way I'll agree, Danny. You have to promise."

"**Fine, fine. I promise.…" **his smile, if possible, grew wider, and he leaned down and placed a chaste kiss on her lips, pulling away before she even got a taste of him. **"We'll save that for later." **She blushed a cherry red, the color startling against her pale skin. **"Now, how do we do this...hmm." **Sam watched him pull a thoughtful expression, a small smile coming to her lips as she watched his pace beside the sign. **"I got it!" **

"Oh no, I don't like that look," she stepped back; a demonic grin was making its way onto his face, falling into place as easily as a mask. "Danny…"

"**This is going to be fun," **he smirked, glancing at her.Sam tried to back away but was pulled into his arms, and they slowly started rising into the air, Danny successfully holding her up beside him. No space was left in between them, and the hand he had on her waist was sending both warmth and chills down her side.

"Danny, what're you doing?!"

He smirked at her, and Sam recognized the playful light in his eyes, as twisted and warped as it was. **"We're going to make our grand entrance." **

Amity Park's massive buildings and towers grew larger in the distance, and Sam had to breathe a tiny cry as they flew over the gleaming structures. The metal and glass shined like polished gems in the murky gray colored sunlight, and she could see the dark swirls in the cloud above.

"A storm's coming."

"**Fitting, considering the occasion." **Danny stared at her out of the corner of his eye, and she frowned at the beginning of a wicked smile that was threatening to appear on his face. **"Ah, perfect…" **he grinned, his trail of sight falling to one of the many streets below. With a quick burst of speed he flew down and landed on the sidewalk with a dull thud, his booted feet not even scuffed from the rough concrete. Sam heard her own heels thud as she landed beside him, her dress billowing out around her and settling in silken folds around her legs. **"Want a little payback?"**

"Huh? What're you talking about?" Danny gave her a tiny smirk and, with a chuckle, went invisible. "Hey, Danny! Where--"

"Well, if it isn't the gothic loser from dork island."

That voice...Sam slowly swiveled around and found herself staring at a familiar Latina, one that made her blood boil and hands clench into tight claws.

"Paulina. What do you want?"

Paulina gave her a dirty smirk, her aqua eyes shining mirthlessly. "What's with the getup, loser? You going to a ball or something?"

"Shut up, Paulina. You don't know what you're talking about."

"Aww, did I touch a nerve? So, where's your date, or did he forget about you? Wouldn't surprise me," the tan skinned girl rolled her eyes, and Sam struggled to hold back her anger when Paulina gave her a push. "Even if Danny Fenton's a loser, he at least had the brains to dump you apparently. I mean, who wants to date a gothic loser?" The Latina grinned a bright smile, her eyes narrowing into a cattish glare.

"Yeah, well, at least I'm not a shallow witch like you," Sam snapped, crossing her arms. "Who wants to date an air headed bimbo who's so shallow I can stand in a puddle of her and not get my feet wet?"

Paulina blinked, her pretty face forming an ugly scowl. "Shallow? I am not shallow!"

Scoffing, Sam shook her head and chuckled. "Please, you're more shallow than a supermodel, just not as pretty!"

"What?!" That cut to the bone. Paulina looked ready to hit the goth, but held back and instead smiled, the cunning glint in her eyes darkening the stone-like irises. "Well, at least I have people who care about me, unlike you. I bet your own parents don't even like you. I mean, who wants a freak as a daughter," she sneered, catching the hurt look that crossed Sam's face. "Nobody likes you. I bet your so called friends would drop you in a heartbeat, including your boyfriend."

That was the final straw. Sam lashed out and shoved the brunette, tears stinging in her eyes. "Shut up, you arrogant little bitch!"

Paulina pushed back, her manicured nails digging into Sam's shoulders. "Why don't you make me, loser!"

"**Why don't I make you…" **

Sam never thought she would feel relief at hearing the icy tones, but she felt just that when a hand encased in a soft leather glove landed on her shoulder. Smirking, Danny stepped up beside her, and Paulina's eyes flew open so wide that they were like aqua colored dinner plates. He shot her a dark look, a cool mask slipping over his pallid features. **"Paulina."**

"Danny Phantom?" For a moment she looked surprised, but she startled everybody when she bounded forward and wrapped her arms around Danny's neck, a gleeful look on her face. "I haven't seen you in forever! What did you do to your clothes," she glanced down at his frame, running a manicured nail down the outlined planes of his chest. "You look gorgeous!"

Danny gave her a disgusted look, but the brunette didn't seem to notice.

"You know, the hottest guy around needs the hottest girl as his girlfriend. You interested?" Paulina brushed her cheek against his, rubbing her body alongst his.

"**And why would I be interested? I already have a girlfriend," **he smirked at her, savoring the startled, angry look that crossed her face.

"You...you have a girlfriend? WHO?"

Danny chuckled and pushed the Latina away, his smirk widening as she fell flat on her butt onto the sidewalk. Wincing, Paulina looked up at him with a confuses smile, but it shifted into an enraged grimace when Danny wound an arm around Sam's waist, his red eyes flashing ruthlessly. **"Sam is my girlfriend. Which means, Paulina," **the name fell from his lips in a cool spat, the rage delicately flavoring the soft word, **"that I wouldn't recommend making fun of her anymore." **

"But, Ghost Boy, I thought that you…" Paulina started to stammer, her gaze switching from Danny to Sam. Her confusion shifted to fury rather quickly, and she angrily jumped to her feet and pointed to Sam, her slight frame shaking. "Why do you wanna date someone like her anyways? She's a loser!"

"**Oh, so you think I need someone more competent…like, you?" **Paulina nodded, triumph gleaming in her aqua eyes as Danny stepped away from Sam and moved towards her. Baring his fangs in a regal smile, he shoved the brunette backwards, making her stumble to her knees. **"Please, don't make me laugh. You're not fit to kiss the ground she walks on." **

"But, but...but she's dating someone! Her and Fenton have been going out for a long time! She's cheating on you!"

Sam glared at the furious girl with narrowed purple eyes, her hands clenching as she started towards her. But, a gloved hand grabbed her wrist and jerked her back, and it was then that Sam saw the cruel light in Danny's eyes.

"**Believe me, Sam is not cheating on me. And even if she was, she'd still be more worthy than you. You're nothing more than a stupid, shallow witch." **

Danny's sharp tongue brought tears to the normally prissy and bubbly brunette, but still she stood her ground. "Pha...Phantom, you jerk! I can't believe I ever liked you! You jerk!" Paulina screamed at him, but her flashing eyes quickly turned on Sam, and she pointed a pink claw at the startled goth. "You! This is all your fault!" Her nails flexing, she darted at Sam and attempted to slash her with her pink nails.

"**Touch her and die…" **

That low hiss made her stop dead in her tracks, her nails inches from Sam's face. Pauline screamed when a pale hand was held before her face, the pale skin layered with a covering of red ectoplasm.

"You, you wouldn't kill me. You're--you're the good guy," she whimpered.

Danny smirked, and he lashed out and grabbed the front of her pink shirt, and Paulina screamed as she was hoisted into the air, her legs uselessly kicking at the laughing boy. Sam couldn't stop feeling a bit fearful when Danny gave her a violent shake, the brunette's head flopping like a rag doll's.

"**I WAS the good guy. You could say I've had a change of heart," **he tossed her to the ground, ignoring her yelp of pain as she collided with the concrete. **"Now, make yourself useful and go tell the mayor what happened. Since all you're good for is gossip, that shouldn't be a particularly hard task, right?" **

Paulina shook her head, trembling with fear as she glanced at Sam; the goth stared at her sympathetically, though a deep part of her enjoyed seeing the brunette resort to being a sniveling crybaby.

Glancing at her, Danny smirked knowingly before turning to Paulina. **"When you manage to get that done, which better be sooner than later, you can look forward to becoming Sam's personal servant. You'll do any task she or I set forward, no matter how demeaning you may find it." **

"WHAT!"

"**Would you rather I kill you," **Danny raised a brow at her, his glowing fingers threateningly twitching. Paulina immediately shook her head no, and, with a short glare at Sam, scrambled to her feet and took off running down the street and around the corner.

"Danny, you...I...oh wow…" Sam didn't know whether to feel happy or angry. She chose both. "How could you do that to her? I know she deserved it, but,"

"**Chill Sam, I wasn't going to kill her. I'm going to have too much fun seeing you boss her around to do that." **Danny grinned at her, and with a casual shrug started glancing around the area. **"Now, where to start…" **

He raised his glowing hand, and Sam yelped as a flaming ectoplasm ball went soaring towards a newly built house on the corner. It exploded in a burst of wood, glass, and molten ghost goo, some shrapnel going so far as to land at her feet.

"Danny, what're you doing?!"

"**Sending a warm welcome to our competitors," **he chuckled, throwing another wave of energy at a row of closed stores on the opposite end; they too exploded with a loud BOOM.

Sam flashed him a confused frown, though anger glittered in her purple eyes. "Danny, you can't just blow up a building! And who're you talking about anyways? Jazz and Tucker?"

"**No." **Danny cupped another ectoplasmic fireball, but he didn't throw it. **"I have a funny feeling that Plasmius and Dan didn't die in that explosion." **

Relief flooded through her, and Sam stared at him with a hopeful smile. "What makes you say that?"

"**Just take my word for it. The more I think about it, the more likely I think it is that the two lived, to my sincere disappointment. In that case, they're probably here. All I have to do now is draw them out."**

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

(twenty minutes before)

"Ok, there is no way in hell that I am going out like this. No…fucking…way!"

Dan glared at his image in Jazz's mirror, his pale face set into a stubborn scowl. His hands grabbed at the long, black, curly wig draped over his head, a disgusted look crossing his face as he glanced down.

He was not happy.

"Please, at least you look somewhat attractive! I look like an idiotic fool!"

Dan snickered as Vlad came storming into the room. The older man, like Dan, had a wig on his head, but his was a long brown one.

"I think you both look adorable," Tucker said brightly. Dan turned and glared at the teen, his now blue eyes narrowing under thick black brows.

"You know, it would be such a pity if the police somehow found your cold, lifeless corpse stranded on a street corner," Dan cracked his knuckles, green ectoplasm swirling around his fingers. Tucker glanced at them and then darted out of the room, his cry of fright echoing throughout the whole house. "Heh. Served him right."

"Would you actually do that," Vlad held back a small grin, instead forcing his face into a mask of casual indifference.

"No. I'd dismember him limb from limb first." Dan grinned at the older man before turning back to the mirror, and he scowled as he reached up and straightening the curly wig. "I really hate Jazz..._I really do_."

Vlad stared at his reflection, winced, and glanced at the other man with a faint smile. "I understand your sentiment wholeheartedly."

"Nice to know I'm so loved." Jazz stepped into her bedroom, her pink lips curled into a bright smile. "And Dan, you _are_ too going out like this. This is the only way that we can get the equipment we need to make more Ecto-Reverso without having to worry about you two of you doing something destructive."

"And this lovely scheme of yours involves us being dressed as women?"

Jazz snickered, her eyes traveling over the two men. "Yes, it does."

Dan, much to his dissatisfaction, had been forced to shape shift into his Danny guise, and then had been decked out in a wig, a pink miniskirt skirt, and a white shirt complete with a padded bra underneath. Black spike heels, which Jazz had dug out of the back of her closet, were strapped onto his feet.

She had miraculously managed to fit Vlad into a pair of her mom's jeans, and had luckily found a pair of plain black boots that were his size, but the issue of the shirt had been a little problem. Finally, Jazz found a black t-shirt of hers that he could wear, and a cute silver belt with a floral design to top it off.

Needless to say, neither man was very happy.

"First of all, we can't exactly have you two go barging into the store in ghost form. The last thing we need is to draw attention to ourselves," Jazz stated. "And because of that, letting Vlad go in in human form is out of the question too."

"I would be recognized too easily."

"Exactly. And Dan, while you could just go in while morphed into your Danny guise, there's always a chance that something could go wrong, especially if Danny shows up and sees you. There's also the matter of your temperament."

"And what so called temper are you talking about?" Dan glared at her, his blue eyes flashing dark red.

Jazz rolled her eyes and snorted; he didn't look very threatening at the moment.

"The one that causes you to lose control the second someone says something you don't like. Which means that you losing whatever little patience you have and attacking everyone in the store is a very likely possibility," Vlad chuckled, smirking at him.

"Are you saying that I have no self-control," Dan growled, his glowing eyes narrowing as his fingers twitched, the ectoplasm around them brightening.

"What do you think?"

"I'm thinking that I'd like to rip your head off."

Vlad rolled his eyes and waved a hand. "You're just as foolish as Daniel if you think you're powerful enough to accomplish such a feat. And just as arrogant too, I believe."

"Don't compare me to that pathetic fool! Besides, you're not exactly known for your low self-esteem!"

"Oh, and I suppose"

"SHUT UP!"

The two blinked in surprise, shock written on their faces as they turned to stare at the simmering redhead.

Jazz, her fists clenched and eyes bright, let out a tiny "o" of surprise.

"Oh, uh, sorry. I guess I just lost my temper." A bright blush spread across her cheeks, and, with a faint smile, she turned away from the two and pulled open her closet door. "Anyway, what was I saying?"

"You were about to discuss the reasons for dressing us up as women, before Dan had a temper tantrum and started acting like a spoiled teenager," Vlad chuckled, and she nodded her head, both ignoring the cold looks shot their way.

"Right. Anyway, Dan going outside without supervision is out of the question, and I'd still be worried even if you were with him, Plasmius. So, the only other option is to send both of you in while wearing disguises, hence the outfits."

"You know, for some reason, I think that everything that just came out of your mouth was a load of...mmff!" A hand descended over Dan's mouth, and the ghost's eyes were livid as his tiny frame was pushed aside. Vlad smirked at him before glancing back at Jazz, who was watching Dan with a smile twitching on her lips.

"Jasmine, as reasonable as your theories are, why dress us up as women?"

Grinning, the redhead shrugged. "Girls are less obvious. Even if Danny does come back to Amity, which I think we can count on, he has no reason to suspect two girls walking around, even if they are unattractive."

Dan grumbled a bit under his breath, his teenaged face contorted into a pout as he leaned against the wall and promptly slid to the floor. Jazz sighed, turning away from the sight of him struggling to climb to his feet in the spiked heels and dug through her closet. Tugging out two black jackets, she tossed them behind her to the guys, and she heard more grumbling and moaning begin as they caught the clothing.

"Oh, stop complaining and deal with it." She turned and tossed them several small containers, and the two went scrambling to catch them. "Put some of that on, and if you need help I'll be glad to give you some pointers." Snickering, the redhead saw their outraged expressions and walked out of the room, her smile widening and turning somewhat malicious with every step she took.

"Hey Jazz, I... Tucker stopped his trek up the steps when he saw the smile. "Umm, do I even want to know why you're smiling like Dan?"

"Those two look totally ridiculous."

He smirked at that, but a confused smile soon replaced the amused expression. "Yeah, about that. I heard Dan yelling at you from downstairs, and I have to wonder myself. Why girls? And Jazz, don't give me that 'their less obvious' crap. Danny's clever. If he knows they're alive, then it wouldn't matter what those two were dressed as."

She glanced back at the doorway, and, with a hand, beckoned Tucker closer. The teen leaned over, and Jazz whispered softly into his ear. "Honestly? I wanted to embarrass the hell out of those guys. Not even the almighty Dan will be able to live this down," she giggled. Tucker snorted, and, after a moment, collapsed to the floor in hysterical laughter.

"Jazz, you are...a genius," he managed to gasp, each pause bringing on another round of giggles and chuckles.

"And just what is so funny?"

The two giggling teenagers froze on the spot. Dan was standing in the doorway, his skirt, jacket, and top practically glowing from the light behind him. He also had lipstick, eye shadow, mascara, and blush on.

He looked very feminine. Very girly.

Jazz held back a fit of giggles at the sight of this, but Tucker simply busted out into loud laughter, his eyes watering as he slumped against the wall and cackled insanely. "Are you laughing at me?" Dan glared at him, but his attempt to look like his usual vicious and evil self didn't work. Really, it made him look like a pouting teenage girl.

"Nah, we were just thinking that you look really pretty," Tucker gasped the words out, but the scowl that appeared on Dan's face made it obvious that he had understood.

"Oh really? You know, I'm beginning to wonder about your usefulness…" he snarled, his eyes flashing red. "Why shouldn't I kill you where you stand? What's stopping me," Dan gave him a malicious grin, his pointed canines appearing from under his lips. It frightened Jazz; now he looked like her brother, all save for the girly hair.

"Normally I wouldn't mind the idea of you killing him, but there's a possibility that we might need Mr. Foley and his technological skills." Vlad joined Dan in the doorway, looking even more ridiculous than his counterpart. He too had a horde of makeup slathered on his face, but, unlike Dan, Vlad didn't make a very pretty girl.

'I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing,' Jazz thought, her gaze sweeping over the two with scrutiny. "All right ladies, let's get going," she finally smiled, holding an arm out to Dan.

"You're pushing it Jazz…" she heard Dan's low grumble as he shoved past her and started down the stairs.

"And when isn't she," Vlad murmured, joining the disguised ghost. Dan shot him a look and walked out the door, slamming a fist through the fragile wood. As they passed the now broken door, Jazz and Tucker were thrown to the side when a loud rumbling shook the ground, the walls shaking and windows rattling.

"What the heck was that?"

Tucker pushed himself up and held a hand out to Jazz, and the redhead climbed to her feet and darted out the door, pulling Tucker behind her. There was a cloud of smoke exploding into the sky from several blocks away, and the teenagers could hear screams echoing somewhere far off in the distance. Dan and Plasmius were standing on the sidewalk, staring out at the chaos with quiet looks on their faces, though there was a hint of lust in Dan's blue eyes. Lust for the chaos, they didn't know, and neither Jazz nor Tucker really wanted to.

"Something tells me we're about to have company," Dan scowled, the bloodlust in his eyes turning the cool irises garnet red.

"And we all know who that someone probably is."

Glancing at each other, Vlad and Dan turned back to the two teenagers. "You two get back inside. We'll take care of it," Dan punched a fist into his palm, an eerie grin spreading across his face.

"No! We're going with you!"

"Really? You want to get yourself killed?" Shaking his head, Dan gave them a cool glare and shoved Jazz backwards, knocking her against the doorway. "The cheesehead and I will take care of this, and you'll stay here. It's as simple as that."

"Why should we listen to you," Tucker yelped as he was thrown bodily through the doorway, Jazz following, unwillingly, behind him. Standing in the doorway and effectively blocking their path, Dan grinned and pointed a glowing hand at them; even when donning Danny's human form, the image was uncomfortably similar to that of their best friend.

"Because you know I'd have no qualms about killing you. The only reason any of you're alive is because I have a use for you, and likewise. It'd be a waste if I were to kill you, but that _would_ make less baggage to worry about."

Frightening as it was, Jazz faintly realized that the disguised ghost was actually considering it; he was thinking about killing them!

As if he knew what she was thinking about, Dan relaxed and crossed his arms, an arrogant smirk on his glamoured face. "Smart girl. Make sure to stay here, Jazz. Who knows what you'd see out there." He turned and walked outside, pulling the door shut behind him.

"Dan!" Jazz ran to the door and threw it open, panic swirling in her chest. "Don't you dare kill him!"

Pausing, the man glanced over his shoulder and bared a grin, and she inwardly flinched at the similarities between the transformed him and Danny. It was unnerving.

"No promises," he chuckled, and he and Vlad took off down the street, running towards the budding chaos that Jazz knew, with without a doubt in her mind, was caused by her baby brother.

"No promises…"

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

(back to Danny in the present)

"**All I have to do now is draw them out." **Danny grinned, cradling the fireball in his hand. **"Actually, I'm surprised they haven't arrived by now." **

"But you don't even know if they are alive!"

Smirking, Danny glanced at the panicking girl beside him and chuckled. **"I thought you'd be happy, knowing there's a chance your precious Dan survived. What, do you want him dead?"**

Sam knew he was baiting her, and she wasn't going to fall for it. "If they are alive, then great for them. The only reason I even care is because they were murdered, by _you _of all people. I can't condone murder, even if it is that arrogant jerk," she snapped, but Danny didn't look convinced.

"**And yet, I'm getting the feeling that you're lying. Well, trying to lie, considering you suck at it."**

"Hey! You're not any better at it than I am!"

"**Would you care to bet on that? I could think of a few rewards I wouldn't mind receiving," **Danny chuckled, a perverted glint in his eyes. **"Then again, I--oh."**

"What?"

"**Oh…my….god," **he whispered, letting out a snort of laughter.

Her frustration rising, Sam smacked the boy's shoulder. "Hey! I'm talking to you! Danny!"

He glanced at her, looked back down the street, and promptly fell to his knees, laughing maniacally while tears fell out of his eyes. Sam stared down at him in shock, but curiosity got the better of her and she too looked down the street. Running towards them were two figures clad in girly clothing, but the makeup covering their pale faces couldn't hide their identities. Relief was only minutely noticed before she grabbed her sides as a tide of laughter fell from her lips.

When the girlified Dan and Plasmius stopped a few feet from them, Danny looked at Sam and smirked. **"Sam?"**

"Ye--yes Danny?"

"**I think we just stepped into drag city."**

**End of Chapter 11**


	12. Chapter 12

"_**Sam?"**_

"_Yes Danny?"_

"_**I think we just stepped into drag city." **_

_The two teens busted out into hysterical laughter at the sight of their opponents dressed up in frilly feminine clothing and girly makeup. The furious expression and reddened cheeks were clearly evident on Dan's face as he and Plasmius stopped several feet away from them, but that only brought on another round of giggling and chuckling from Danny and Sam._

"_**Ok, I've heard of going incognito, but this," **__Danny let loose a throaty laugh, and Dan scowled at him, his fingers impatiently tapping against his arm. __**"If I was still good, I probably would've used this as leverage or something! Man, this is too good!"**_

_Glancing down at themselves, Dan and Plasmius simultaneously slapped their foreheads. "We forgot to morph into our ghost halves!"_

"_**Ingenious. You two are positively brilliant."**_

_Shooting the grinning halfa a dark glare, the two shifted out of their guises as the rings appeared around their waists. _

"_**You know, that gets really old after a while. I wonder why we can't change our transformations?" **__Danny idly glanced at his nails, a glint darkening his ruby eyes. __**"Then again, nothing could make you two look impressive."**_

Dan angrily threw his arms out, his fingers flickering green with ectoplasm. "Aren't you even surprised to see us alive?!"

"**No, not really," **Danny grinned, climbing to his feet.** "I had a suspicion that you two survived." **All traces of humor were suddenly swept from his face, and he stared at the two ghosts with furrowed eyes. **"Pity. I was really hoping that you'd died." **He shrugged, the spikes on his shoulders winking in the gray light. **"Oh well...on the bright side," **his lips parted and revealed wicked looking fangs, **"now I can watch your blood spill across the concrete as I rip your hearts out."**

"Danny!" Sam deftly slapped his arm, glaring daggers at the halfa. "You promised!"

"**Actually, I **_**promised **_**that I wouldn't hurt any people...technically, since these two are fellow freaks of nature, they don't apply." **His smile grew wider, the familiar glow awakening in his red eyes.

"Danny, you know I…" Sam didn't have time to complete her sentence; Danny pushed her back and ran at supersonic speed towards the two, his hands surrounded by brilliant ectoplasm flames. Cries of outrage echoed in her ears when he threw the flames at Dan and Plasmius, his maniacal laughter mingling with their screams and bringing a crazed look to his face.

"**I'd run if I was you!"**

"Why would we want to do that, Daniel? Are you afraid to get your hands dirty," Vlad dodged a bolt of ectoplasm as it went soaring by his shoulder. He nearly missed having his arm cleaved off.

"**Oh please. I look forward to having your blood staining my hands," **Danny shot another round of ectoplasm at the two, and Dan released a shriek of rage as a beam of the glowing red energy slammed into his chest. He was thrown backwards, his body landing on the pavement with a dull smack.

"Why you…" Dan snarled. "You don't know how to fight fair, do you?"

"**Haven't we already gone over this? All's fair in war," **Danny flew into the air, his hands enveloped with ecto-flames. **"And besides, you're not one to talk when it comes to fighting fair. I seem to recall your fusing a time medallion in my chest before you mercilessly threw me into the ghost zone, leaving me stuck in the fucking future…" **his voice turned dark, taking on the murderous undertone that only added to his demented image.

'He makes a good point,' Sam thought to herself, watching the floating halfa and anxiously grabbing her dress. 'But still.'

Danny threw a wave of dark red energy at Plasmius and Dan. The blast slammed into Dan, and he went flying through the air before crashing through a display window of a nearby store; this time, he didn't get up. Plasmius managed to dodge the first couple of shots that went his way, but a third one nailed him solidly in the shoulder and sent him careening towards a building. Sam winced at the sound of flesh colliding with brick, and panic flared inside her when she saw him slide to the ground, a smear of blood trailing down the brick.

"Danny, stop it!" She ran over to the broken window display and peered inside. Dan was sprawled across the floor, his flaming hair licking at the shards of glass. Blood was trickling from the tiny wounds slashed into his face, and the front of his suit, which had repaired itself during his moments in his Danny guise, was burned to the point of unrecognizing.

"**Sam. Get out of the way." **

The goose bumps flared up on her neck, and Sam could feel a cold chill brushing over her back. She didn't have to turn around to know who was standing behind her, and she didn't have to see his red eyes to know what he wanted to do.

"No," she whispered, turning to face the cruel eyed halfa. "Danny, listen to me. I-"

Danny grabbed her arm with a gloved hand and tried to push her aside, but Sam dug her heels into the ground and shook her head.** "**_**Move**_**…."**

"No! I won't let you hurt him!" She snapped her arm away and glared at him, the tears stinging her violet eyes.

"……_**you won't let me**_**...?" **

A bitter silence unfurled around the two, and, even as the chill crept down Sam's skin, a gray drizzle of rain started to trickle from the unrelenting iron clouds. The icy water slipped through the thin silk of her dress and numbed her body, but the rain seemed to have no effect on Danny. Rather, he didn't even seem to notice it at all. The hybrid stared at her, the rain soaking his dual colored bangs while wind blew the silken strands over his face, though nothing could hide the intense garnet irises that were narrowed into preditorial slits.

Sam couldn't tug her gaze away. The brightness of those red orbs carried an intensity she'd never before. Even when he was angry at her, his eyes never looked like that. 'Those aren't human eyes…they're demon eyes.'

_**FWOOM**_

Thunder rumbled in the stormy sky, all traces of sunlight gone from the gray horizon. Sam held her breath as a jagged bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, the blinding white light illuminating Danny's imposing form. The wind started to pick up, a particularly violent gust whipping his ankle length coat out behind his back, the black leather flapping like angel wings. Or, in his case, devil wings.

Danny looked like a messenger straight out of hell.

"Or a god of darkness," Sam whispered, taking a step back. "Danny…"

"**Stay put." **

She froze in her tracks. There was a psychotic edge darkening his velvety voice, shredding any humanity that might have been left from the rich baritone.

"..Danny, I"

"_**SILENCE!"**_

His roar was like a knife through her heart. There was no sense of morality left in the devil standing in front of her. She could see his eyes, and she knew there were tears rolling down her cheeks as she stared into the bloody irises. The boy she was staring at wasn't the Danny she knew. Not even the evil one.

Danny stared back at her quietly, his face impassively blank.

"**Sam."**

He whispered her name casually, but the anger and beneath the words brought tears of worry to her eyes, tears that slipped down her cheeks and sprinkled to the ground below.

"Danny, what're you,"

"**Shut up."**

Her mouth slammed shut, her eyes widening and practically shining with unspoken fear. She nearly started screaming when fingers started trailing over her lips. **"Sam...why does it bother you so much?" **Danny leaned closer, the cold look in his eyes eerily inhuman. **"They're my enemies, just as they were before I changed...why can't you accept that?"**

"Because...because they're actually fighting for good! You're not! You want to kill everyone!"

Danny's expression immediately shifted to one of cold rage. The fire remained in his eyes, but the red flames grew brighter, the glow intensifying to inferno proportions. **"Ah, I see...so, it doesn't matter that we've been friends for years, or that I pledged my love to you," **he replied, the iciness in his voice bringing a small gasp to Sam's lips.

"Danny, that's not what I meant, it's just…" she started shaking her head, but he lowered his hand and tightly gripped her chin, holding her face still and forcing the goth to stare directly into his glowing eyes.

"**Just what? Just that you hate what I've become? You're probably wondering how you could've loved such a disgusting creature, right?" **Sam could see the blur of emotions racing in his eyes, and anger was the one that shined most brilliantly. **"Of course…I see it now," **he whispered, staring into her eyes. The fingers on her face tightened, nails digging into her jaw. **"You don't love me."**

"Danny…no." He was making her cry; Sam could feel the tears stinging her purple eyes. "I--I do, but--I just...I hate what you've become! I love the old you, the one who fought for the people of Amity Park, not try and rule them! How can you do this, why are you doing this?!" Sam started to pant, but her anger fueled her tongue and brought on another harsh round of words. "Danny, if you really loved me, then you wouldn't do this!"

She instantly regretted letting the words leave her mouth. The look on Danny's face shifted between a blend of rage and sorrow, and it tore at her heart. She'd never seen him look like that. Even his eyes lost most of their glow, leaving the orbs a dull garnet color.

"...Danny? I'm sorry, I didn't mean…" what did she mean? "I, I'm...Danny…"

"**Leave me alone…" **Danny hissed, slashing a hand towards her and knocking her back several steps. Her feet splashed in several puddles, the cold water soaking her feet and splashing her stockings, but she barely noticed.

"Danny." Sam reached out, her fingers lightly brushing the leather of his coat. "I'm,"

"**LEAVE ME ALONE!" **Danny slapped her hand away, his eyes flaring back to life and resuming their bloody glow. **"Just go away and leave me alone, Sam, since you clearly don't care about me at all!" **

"What?! What're you saying? Danny, I,"

Sam didn't get a chance to finish. A beam of green ectoplasm shot its way in between them, knocking Danny back and nearly causing him to stumble. Another blast, this time bright pink, slammed into his chest and threw the halfa out into the street. Sam cried out as a spray of asphalt, dust and rain went shooting up into the air, all but obscuring Danny from her vision.

"Danny! Danny, are you ok?" She ran towards the cloud that was swirling around him, pushing the rain soaked strands of hair out of her face, but was immediately halted when a black gloved hand fell on her shoulder, pulling her back and onto the sidewalk. "Hey!"

"Hey yourself." The cold voice was a shocker to hear, and Sam whirled around and stared up at the blue skinned ghost scowling down at her, his face streaked with green blood that trickled down his face and mingled with the rain.

"Dan!"

"In the ghostly flesh." He barely spared her a second glance, instead scanning his eyes over the dust shrouded street. "He landed out there?"

"Yeah…" Sam peered into the cloud of dust, but nothing was visible through the impenetrable grayness and drizzling rain.

"I'm sure that I saw Daniel land in there." Vlad walked up beside Dan, holding a hand against a bleeding wound on his thigh. Sam looked at him, but her gaze quickly went back to the cloud of dust. "However, that doesn't mean he's unconscious. We should be careful."

"Let's just grab him and--"

**FWOOSH**

The dust, once floating peacefully and undisturbed, now slammed away from the street's center, followed by a circling red blast of crackling ectoplasm. Sam couldn't hold back the small gasp that escaped her lips, her eyes immediately drawn to the figure standing in the middle of the chaos.

"**Please tell me you didn't think it'd be that easy…" **the snarl broke through the silence, a bone chilling sound that was layered with an unhinged edge. **"I'm not that pathetic, unlike your little attacks." **

Danny glared at them, his gaze sweeping over the two wounded ghosts. When his sight landed on Sam, the goth felt as if ice had been poured in her veins. His eyes, while cruel, had always held a hint of kindness when he looked at her. Not anymore.

"**But if you wanna fight so bad, then I'll be only too happy to oblige!" **He thrusted out his hand and cleanly shot a beam of ectoplasm at Plasmius, at the same time throwing a wave of glowing red fire towards Dan. Sam jumped back just in time, the flames singing her skirt as they landed on the ground and encircled the space around Dan, trapping him in a ring of ectoplasmic fire.

The flames towered up and completely surrounded Dan in a burning column, and a pained howl came from within their depths. As the fire cut into his skin and ripped through the flesh and muscle, Dan screamed and tried to fight himself free, but his wounds were weakening him, draining his power. It wasn't long before he fell to the ground, groaning in pain.

"Dan!"

Sam tried to see into the inferno, but the flames were too tall; she couldn't even see Dan, but she could hear his grunts of pain. A cry came from her side, and she glanced away from the ring of fire and saw Danny and Vlad locking fists, a deranged look on the white haired boy's face.

"Give up Daniel," Vlad grunted, pushing furiously and clenching Danny's hands to near breaking point.

"**Why? You afraid you'll hurt something," **Danny grinned at him, pushing back with an intensified fury that far surpassed his.

Plasmius was exhausted, that much was obvious, and the pained look on his face as he started moving back on the asphalt was just as clear. He tried to fight, to push the smirking boy back, but Danny was too strong.

"**Don't worry, you will." **

Danny's grin widened, and, before Vlad could respond, his hands were consumed by flaming energy, energy that coursed up Vlad's arms and started crackling, much like electricity. Sam covered her ears at the sound of the pained screams Vlad started releasing, cries that echoed off the buildings and rang around her.

"Danny, leave him alone! This is wrong, leave him alone!"

Glancing her way, Danny dropped his hands after waving one towards Dan. Vlad collapsed to the ground and Dan was revealed to already be lying on the broken asphalt, the different energy attacks that they had been pummeled with vanishing. Sam watched as tiny rivulets of blood started seeping through the various burn and tear spots of their costumes, the peridot colored liquid blending with the rain and running off their motionless bodies. She took a step towards them, but she didn't get far. Hard hands enclosed around her upper arms from behind, hands clad in familiar looking fingerless leather gloves.

"**They're not dead…yet. But they will be, unless, of course, you're willing to make a deal." **

"…..a deal?"

**End of Chapter 12**


	13. Chapter 13

**I'm so sorry this took so long to get out to you guys! I can't do anything except apologize, and promise to have the next chapter out a little bit quicker. But it'll still be a while, since I start school in a few weeks and need to start getting ready. FYI, college sucks ass ****J**

**Anyway, thanks to all the people who've just started reading Reversed Hero (you know who you are!), and hello again to all the old fans who hopefully have returned to read this chapter! I hope you guys enjoy the chapter that's been a while in the making, and please remember to review! **

_**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Sam glanced over her shoulder at stared into cold eyes, the cruel sneer curving Danny's lips making her cringe. "What kind of deal," she whispered.

"**I don't want to fight them in such unfair conditions. When I defeat them, I want it to be on equal terms. Here's what I'm offering. You all go back to FentonWorks and rest up, and then you meet me in the park, tomorrow."**

"But, why--"

"**Tomorrow Dan, Plasmius and I will fight. The first person to be captured and detained or killed will be the winner, and that person will dictate the future of this pathetic little town. And, more importantly, you."**

"Me?"

Danny nodded, the frigid gleam in his eyes turning colder as he glared at her, his mouth turning down into a tight scowl. **"The winner of this fight will get to decide what happens to you. Mainly, your future."**

"Why am I not surprised you'd think up such a fucked up idea?" Turning her head, Sam saw Dan kneeling in a puddle of blood with rain streaming down his face and making his hair flicker, the asphalt broken into tiny bits around his legs and scorched where the ecto-fire had been. Wiping a hand across his face, Dan spat a mixture of blood tinted saliva onto the ground and shakingly climbed to his feet, glaring daggers at the snowy haired teenager standing behind Sam. "And how chivalrous of you. Offering a fair fight. Never thought I'd see the day, though I bet it's just as much for your benefit. You're hurt pretty bad too."

"Dan? You're ok?" Sam tried to run to him, but the hands on her arms kept her still.

"Yeah, no thanks to your boyfriend," he growled. Danny's hands abruptly tightened over Sam's arms, his nails ripping into the pale skin.

"**I **_**am not **_**her boyfriend. Not anymore." **

Dan looked surprised, and it showed on his face when Danny gave Sam a rough push, sending her stumbling to the ground in front of him. He didn't even look the least bit guilty when her knees were scraped and her stockings soaked through. **"That little witch is undeserving of the affections I bestowed upon her," **Danny flashed her a cruel smile, and Sam felt her heart wrench as she stared into the flaming red irises.

Frowning, Dan narrowed his eyes. "Oh really? Then why do you care what happens to her?"

Chuckling, Danny shook his head and idly rubbed his fingers together. **"I have several plans I want to put into action, one of which involves becoming king of this town. And every king needs slaves, right?"**

It was as if a knife was being jabbed into her heart. Sam reeled back and felt the tears wash over her eyes, and she only felt relief when Dan stepped in front of her, though his expression was anything but sympathetic. He looked angry, but she could have sworn that it was _her _he was angry at, considering the scowl he tossed her way before facing Danny. "So, you wanna fight?"

"**I believe I just mentioned that. What, are you deaf?" **Danny smirked, flexing his fingers and watching them glow a manic red. **"You and Plasmius will come to the park tomorrow, and you'll bring Sam with you. We'll fight to the aforementioned outcomes, and the future will be decided by the winner. And I can assure you, it'll be me."**

"Arrogant as always," Dan rolled his eyes, but there was a cool expression on his face. Sam looked at him, then at Danny, and her heart raced as she cried out and smacked Dan's arm.

"You're not seriously considering this?"

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I?"

"Because this is my life we're talking about!"

"And this is the only chance we're going to get at defeating him. Are you honestly willing to let a chance at defeating Danny go just because you're afraid for your life?"

"**Aww, how sweet. Just like an old married couple," **a husky voice growled, a hint of anger and mockery coloring the words as he interrupted their spat. **"Well? I don't have all day, **_**Dan**_**. Do we have a deal, or not?"**

His red eyes flickering, Dan stared at Danny with a frown forming on his face. Taking a quick look at Sam, the flame haired ghost ran a hand through his firey strands and nodded. "Fine. We have a deal."

"**Then I have nothing more to say to you," **Danny snapped. **"Go, enjoy your rest. You'll need it." **

Dan nodded, glaring at the teenager before he grabbed Sam's arm and started to drag her away, feeling the flaming eyes boring into his back. The goth struggled, stumbling as she tried to pry her arm from the gloved fingers, her feet slipping on the wet street.

"Dan, wait! I need to talk to Danny!"

"**I have nothing more to say to the likes of you…" **the halfa murmured, watching her being pulled away with a cold look on his face. **"You betrayed me."**

"No! Danny! Please, I have to talk to you!"

Danny shook his head with a twisted smile forming on his handsome face. **"Take her away, Dan. Let her enjoy her freedom while she can." **

Sam angrily pulled against the man's grip, but Dan easily swept her legs out from under her and threw the screaming girl over his shoulder. "Easier said than done," he grumbled, glancing back at the teenager. He and Danny locked gazes, and Sam felt the ghost's body tense as Dan stared at the demonically dressed teenager.

"….I understand."

"Huh? What're you talking about," Sam snapped, beating a fist against his back. They ignored her, sharing dark looks as they gazed at one another.

"**Do you," **Danny snapped, cocking his head. **"Do you really?"**

"Yeah. I do."

The two phantoms stared at one another for several more seconds before Dan finally chuckled and shook his head. "It's a weakness. You're better off."

"**Yeah. Maybe you're right." **Danny ran a hand through the saturated silken bangs blowing across his face, a faint smirk toying with his pale lips. **"Nothing can hold me back now." **He tossed his head and waved at his alter self.** "Sayonara, Dan. Enjoy your last night of life." **

The words had barely registered in Sam's head before the boy disappeared, fading away into the rain and shadows. "Hey! Where'd he go?"

"Who knows." Dan hauled the girl down, setting her on her feet. "It doesn't matter. We'll be seeing him soon." When he started to walk away, Sam watched him, confused.

"But, what did you mean? What do you understand?"

Strolling over to the unconscious body of Plasmius, Dan pulled him into a sitting position and slapped him across the face, trying to arouse the man. "You already know, but you're too clueless to figure it out."

"I am not clueless!"

Shrugging, Dan slapped Plasmius again and, this time, the older man groaned and wearily opened his eyes, grimacing when he saw the man kneeling before him.

"Wonderful. You're alive," Plasmius groaned, pressing a hand against his temple. Smirking, Dan roughly tugged him to his feet, but he let the wounded man steady himself before moving away. Starting down the street, Dan heard Plasmius falling into step behind him, and, one undignified cry later, Sam followed.

"Dan! What were you talking about?! Dan!"

"Apparently, I missed something important." Vlad murmured, moving up besides him.

"Yeah. Here's the summary; we got our asses handed to us on a silver platter, Sam did something to cause Danny to hate her guts, and now we're going to have a fight to the death. Or capture, in Danny's case, since we can't kill him unless it's necessary." Glancing at him, Dan sighed and anxiously rubbed his forehead. "To make matters more interesting, the winner takes all. Including the reins of Sam's future."

Vlad's eyes widened, a knowing glint in the red depths. "Meaning, if young Daniel wins, he basically becomes king of Amity Park and gets to keep Samantha as his….what exactly?"

"Honestly?" Dan glanced back at the girl; she was struggling to catch up to them, but he could easily see the tears streaming down her face. "Let's just say that she better hope we don't lose."

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

(a few hours later)

"Dan! Would you hold still?"

"Maybe if you actually knew what you were doing, then I could! Oww! Dammit Jazz!"

"Well, I'm sorry, but I told you to hold still!"

Sam watched the two bicker as the redhead was attempting to wind bandages around a particularly nasty wound slashed across the ghost's torso, though several of the cotton strands were already covering his badly beaten body.

Sitting beside her in human form and sporting several bandaged wounds of his own, Vlad watched the two 'siblings' fight and chuckled, though his expression was anything but comical. "It seems that some things never change," he murmured. Sam didn't respond; she was staring at the two, but there was a blankness in her gaze. Looking at her out of the corner of his eye, Vlad saw the pained expression breaking through her cold mask, the tears threatening to trickle down her cheeks. "Samantha….just what exactly happened between you and Danny?"

"….he hates me," Sam whispered. "He thinks that I don't love him, and now he hates me."

Vlad frowned. "Why would he believe such a thing?"

Glancing at him with suspicion, Sam scowled and wiped the tears angrily from her face. "None of your business, Plasmius."

"Samantha, anything having to deal with a potential weakness of Daniel's at the moment is my business. And would you rather have Dan find out first?"

About to protest, Sam let out an angry growl and glared at him, though she had to admit that the man had a point. "I wouldn't tell him anyways, if he doesn't already know," she snapped. "He and Danny apparently have this stupid secret Dan won't tell me about, and, even worse, Danny hated me! I told Danny that I wouldn't let him hurt anybody, and he interpreted that as my not loving him." Tears unwillingly sprang forth in her eyes, but she angrily brushed them away.

"….Samantha, perhaps that's best for now. Daniel could have hurt you, had you remained with him," Vlad murmured, rubbing his chin. "But I doubt that Daniel truly hates you. Even evil, he seems to harbor unusually strong feelings for you, and nothing that strong could be destroyed so easily. I believe Daniel is just upset at the moment. Remember, he is rather irrational, due to the circumstances at hand, and it doesn't seem likely that he could hate you."

Sam stared at him, but the pain didn't fade from her eyes. "You didn't see the look in his eyes…" she whispered, cupping her chin. "I've never seen so much hate. Danny's never looked at anybody that way before. Not even Dan!"

"That may be true, but I still don't believe that Daniel could ever hate you. I believe he hates Dan and I, but you? Not likely." Vlad laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, but Sam angrily shoved it away, her face cold. Sighing, Vlad folded his arms on the table and frowned at the brunette, who scowled back. "Very well. You refuse to listen to me."

"….." Sam didn't reply; she just glared and turned away. An annoyed look crossed Vlad's face, but he shoved it aside and climbed up from the table. When glances from Dan and Jazz turned his way, he smiled.

"I'm going to rest in the living room, if Jasmine doesn't mind. In fact, we should all get some rest. Tomorrow will likely be hectic; we'll need all the rest we can get." He disappeared through the doorway, and Jazz lazily moved out of her chair, tired lines at the corners of her eyes.

"He's right. We should all get some rest." Jazz went over to Sam, who was bent over the table, her expression stony. "Sam…do you want to sleep in my room tonight? I don't mind sharing the-"

"No. I'm gonna sleep in Danny's room." Sam pushed away from the table and started out of the kitchen, ignoring the calls from Jazz. "G'night." She went up the stairs, relieved when no one came to take her back. She didn't want to deal with anyone at the moment. When she came to the door leading to Danny's room, she paused, her hand lingering over the knob. "…Danny…" Sam blinked back tears and pushed it open, cringing slightly as she stepped into the once comforting darkness. The room had once held fond memories for her, but now all she could think of was the red eyes that had looked at her with such _hate. _Sam didn't think she'd ever get those hellish orbs out of her head. "It's not fair," she went over to his bed, threading her fingers through the crumpled sheets. They still carried a faint scent of soap and spice, Danny's favorite deodorant. "Danny…why did this happen? It's not fair!" She fell onto the bed, laying her head on a pillow. "I don't hate you," Sam murmured, tears slipping down her cheeks. "I love you!"

Danny hated her. Sam knew the others didn't believe her, but how could he not? "I'd hate me too, if I were him," she muttered. "I should've done something! Maybe if I'd--"

"Hate's a strong word. But in this case, I'd say it's appropriate."

Sam gasped, shuddering as the icy words sent a chill down her spine. The venomous voice was laced with a faint tinge of mockery, one she recognized all to well. And eyes slowly took form in the darkness, narrowed and glowing a bloody red. "….Danny?"

_**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

**That's it for this chapter. Like I said, I don't know when the next one will be out, but I figured I'd at least get this one out for you guys to enjoy! Hope it wasn't too suckish, but I sincerely apologize for both the length of time it took to get this out and the possible suckiness of the chapter ;) Anyway, I give you my love, loyal fans, and I send out virtual cookies to you all! XOXO**


End file.
